| Official Name: |
Republic of Malta |
| Capital City: |
Valletta |
| Location: |
The Maltese islands (Malta, Gozo and Comino) lie virtually at the centre of the Mediterranean Sea, 93 km south of Sicily (Italy) and 290 km north of Africa.
|
| Area: |
316 km |
| Coastline: |
196.8 km (does not include 56.01 km for the island of Gozo)
|
| Climate: |
Mediterranean with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers
|
| Time: |
Malta is one hour ahead of GMT (2 hours ahead in summer)
|
| Natural Resources: |
Limestone, salt, arable land |
| Population: |
405,577 (NSO 2006 estimate) |
| Religion: |
Roman Catholic (98% of population) |
| Languages: |
Maltese (official), English (official). Italian, though not official, is widely spoken
|
| Government Type: |
Republic |
| Independence: |
21 September 1964 (from UK) |
| Currency: |
Euro (since 01.01.08) |
| Economic sectors: |
Tourism, electronics, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, ICT and finance
|