The Government of Malta - CountriesPedia

Malta - Government

Based on the etymolgy of Malta, it was the ancient Greeks called the island "Melite" meaning "honey-sweet" from the Greek word "meli" meaning "honey" and referring to the island's honey production. The Government system in this country is the parliamentary republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 68 localities (Il-lokalita); Attard, Balzan, Birgu, Birkirkara, Birzebbuga, Bormla, Dingli, Fgura, Floriana, Fontana, Ghajnsielem, Gharb, Gharghur, Ghasri, Ghaxaq, Gudja, Gzira, Hamrun, Iklin, Imdina, Imgarr, Imqabba, Imsida, Imtarfa, Isla, Kalkara, Kercem, Kirkop, Lija, Luqa, Marsa, Marsaskala, Marsaxlokk, Mellieha, Mosta, Munxar, Nadur, Naxxar, Paola, Pembroke, Pieta, Qala, Qormi, Qrendi, Rabat, Rabat (Ghawdex), Safi, San Giljan/Saint Julian, San Gwann/Saint John, San Lawrenz/Saint Lawrence, Sannat, San Pawl il-Bahar/Saint Paul's Bay, Santa Lucija/Saint Lucia, Santa Venera/Saint Venera, Siggiewi, Sliema, Swieqi, Tarxien, Ta' Xbiex, Valletta, Xaghra, Xewkija, Xghajra, Zabbar, Zebbug, Zebbug (Ghawdex), Zejtun, Zurrieq

National symbols

Maltese eight-pointed cross; national colors: red, white.

The flag

The National flag of Malta has two equal vertical bands of white (hoist side) and red; in the upper hoist-side corner is a representation of the George Cross, edged in red; according to legend, the colors are taken from the red and white checkered banner of Count Roger of Sicily who removed a bi-colored corner and granted it to Malta in 1091; an uncontested explanation is that the colors are those of the Knights of Saint John who ruled Malta from 1530 to 1798; in 1942, King George VI of the UK awarded the George Cross to the islanders for their exceptional bravery and gallantry in World War II; since independence in 1964, the George Cross bordered in red has appeared directly on the white field.

The National Anthem

Title	"L-Innu Malti" (The Maltese Anthem)
Lyric/music	Dun Karm PSAILA/Robert SAMMUT

note: adopted 1945; written in the form of a prayer

More about the government of Malta

Constitution
Date of Independence	21 September 1964 (from the UK)
National holiday	Independence Day, 21 September (1964); Republic Day, 13 December (1974)
Legal system	mixed legal system of English common law and civil law based on the Roman and Napoleonic civil codes; subject to European Union law
International law organization participation	accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
History	Many previous; latest adopted 21 September 1964
Amendments	Proposals (Acts of Parliament) require at least two-thirds majority vote by the House of Representatives; passage of Acts requires majority vote by referendum, followed by final majority vote by the House and assent of the president of the republic; amended many times, last in 2020
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	at least one parent must be a citizen of Malta
Dual citizenship recognized	no
Residency requirement for naturalization	5 years
Executive Branch
Chief of state	President Myriam Spiteri DEBONO (since 4 April 2024)
Head of government	Prime Minister Robert ABELA (13 January 2020)
Cabinet	Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister
Elections/appointments	president indirectly elected by the House of Representatives for a single 5-year term; election last held on 27 March 2024 (next to be held by March 2029); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the president for a 5-year term; deputy prime minister appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister
Election results	2024: Myriam SPITERI DEBONO (PL) elected president; House of Representatives vote - unanimous 2019: George VELLA (PL) elected president; House of Representatives vote - unanimous
Legislative branch
Description	Unicameral House of Representatives or Il-Kamra Tad-Deputati, a component of the Parliament of Malta (65 seats statutory, 79 for 2022-2027 term; members directly elected in 5 multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
Elections	Last held on 26 March 2022 (next to be held in 2027)
Election results	Percent of vote by party - PL 55.1%, PN 41.7%, other 3.2%; seats by party - PL 38, PN 29; composition as of February 2024 - men 57, women 22, percentage women 27.9%; note - due to underepresentation by women in the combined general on 26 March and two casual elections on 7 and 12 April (10 seats or 14.9%), an additional 12 seats were awarded because their percentage did not meet the 40% threshold required by the Malta Constitution or the General Elections Amendment Act 2021
Judicial branch
Highest court(s)	Court of Appeal (consists of either 1 or 3 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of 3 judges); Court of Criminal Appeal (consists of either 1 or 3 judges)
Judge selection and term of office	Court of Appeal and Constitutional Court judges appointed by the president, usually upon the advice of the prime minister; judges of both courts serve until age 65
Subordinate courts	Civil Court (divided into the General Jurisdiction Section, Family Section, and Voluntary Section); Criminal Court; Court of Magistrates; Gozo Courts (for the islands of Gozo and Comino)
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Godfrey C. XUEREB (since 19 April 2023)
Chancery	2017 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone	[1] (771) 213-4050
FAX	[1] (202) 530-9753
Email address and website	[email protected] The Embassy (gov.mt)
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Constance J. MILSTEIN (since October 27, 2022)
Embassy	Ta' Qali National Park, Attard, ATD 4000
Mailing address	5800 Valletta Place, Washington DC 20521-5800
Telephone	[356] 2561-4000
Email address and website	[email protected] https://mt.usembassy.gov/
National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites	3 (all cultural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales	City of Valletta; Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum; Megalithic Temples of Malta