WATCH | People in Malta are more satisfied than ever, but pollution, stress, and loneliness are taking their toll

Maltese people are more satisfied with their lives but paradoxically report an increase in negative emotions, according to the Wellbeing-INDEX issued on Tuesday.

According to the study, traffic, stress, time management, pollution, loneliness, and anxiety on the future are the main sources of the negative emotions reported. 

Satisfaction levels are higher than ever, with personal relationships as the strongest source. Those respondents who regularly met family and friends reported higher overall wellbeing. 

In international wellbeing ranking, Malta has climbed to 43rd place in the World Happiness Report, moving up to 12th in the EU.

While satisfaction with life, finances, employment and relationships all improved between 2023 and 2024, emotional wellbeing consistently declined across all areas. 

Professor Marie Briguglio, one of the professors leading the study, told parliament that while life satisfaction was high, personal relationships were strong, and international rankings were improving, a number of important challenges remained.

“Malta is making progress, but progress must also be felt by those who are struggling the most,” she said.

When asked for the reason behind the increase in negative emotions, respondents mentioned traffic, stress, time, and worry for the future. 

People in poor health are the group least satisfied with their relationships and continue to report increasing levels of loneliness and isolation. 

While most groups studied saw an improvement in their relationships after COVID, those in poor health did not experience that recovery and continued to decline. 

Time management was the country’s main concern recorded in the study. While previous reports tended to remain above 8.5%, 2024 reported 6.91% satisfaction in this area.

The groups most affected by time management are parents, with particular emphasis on single parents along with families consisting of two adults and two children. However, these groups tend to do better than others in aspects like general happiness.

Problematic social media use continued to be a concern for Malta. This is strongly linked to an increase in psychological complaints including irritability, nervousness, and sleep difficulties.

Prevalence of these issues are worse among young women, who showed significantly higher levels of negative emotions than men in 2024.

Another source of unhappiness recorded by study is a growing strain in living conditions and material deprivation across the country. 

In 2024, 34.5% of the population, or 164,656 individuals, reported exposure to noise in their neighbourhood. Another 37.8%, over 180 thousand individuals, reported exposure to pollution. 

Close to 10% of the population report an increase in damp walls and leaking roofs, affecting over 40,000 individuals.

Anxiety about neighbourhood crime also increased by around 36%.

President Emeritus Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, who is the Wellbeing of Society founder and chair, said that it is important for parliament to continue to invest in young people and to “build a generation that not only understands the concept of wellbeing, but knows how to create it.”

“Wellbeing should be placed at the heart of governance, policy, and everyday life to ensure our decisions contribute to a society where all individuals can lead fulfilling and dignified lives,” Coleiro Preca said.

The study aims to go beyond the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to help guide policies. Matthew Zerafa, CEO of the Housing Authority, said that “these indicators allow us to understand reality and must guide our choices.”

Opposition Spokesperson for the Economy Jerome Caruana Cilia, said, “I speak to all sorts of people everyday. No one measures their life in economic statistics,” emphasising that GDP can only go so far in measuring the success of a country.

Economy Minister Silvio Schembri, stated that government's work needs to be more targeted to struggling groups, since wider measures don’t always reach those who need it most.

Launched five years ago by the MFWS and the University of Malta, the Wellbeing INDEX project serves as a repository of data and evidence on the island’s wellbeing that goes beyond Gross Domestic Product to capture how people feel about their everyday lives. Its findings can be explored through interactive dashboards on the project’s website.

This event was addressed by MFWS founder and chair Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca,  Speaker Anglu Farrugia, Economy Minister Silvio Schembri, his Opposition counterpart Jerome Caruana Cilia, University pro-rector Valerie Sollars, and Housing Authority CEO Matthew Zerafa.