Malta registers second lowest unemployment rate in Europe

Malta achieved the second lowest unemployment rate in the EU according to Eurostat figures.

“The 5.1% rate is the lowest rate to ever be registered in Malta since Eurostat began collecting its data,” a government statement points out, adding that the rate is also lower than half that observed in other Euro Zone countries.

The statement pointed out that under the previous legislation the unemployment rate had been even higher, with an average of 6.5%. It added that the difference between Malta and other countries in the Euro Zone was of around 5.8 percentage points.

“The source of this improvement was a strong drop in unemployment rates among young people which has dropped to a record 8.7%, which is also the second lowest rate among young people in the EU following that in Germany.”

The government added that this reduction was a direct result of initiatives like the youth guarantee, which had been heavily criticized by the opposition.

“If this scheme hadn’t been enacted, thousands of young people would have been on benefits now. The difference is that these same young people are currently paying taxes that are leading to further investments and better pensions for the elderly,” the statement adds.

The statement continues by welcoming the statistics as a sign of healthy and effective economic and social policies that had been worked out over the past two years and a half.

“The government firmly believes that the fight against unemployment should continue, and that workers should continue to fine tune and strengthen their skills so that the country’s economy can develop and more jobs can be created.”