Malta is the country with the highest rate of men amongst its population in Europe, with 52 per cent of the total population being male, according to census data published by the National Statistics Office on Thursday.

No other European country has a rate higher than 50.3%, with Luxembourg, Sweden and Slovenia all registering this figure.

The overall gender ratio in the EU is 49% males to 51% females.

This is also the first time that men have outnumbered women in Malta’s recorded history.

The census data suggests that the government drive to import foreign labour over the past years has had a significant impact on Malta’s demographic make-up, with many of changes shaped by the influx of men of a working age.

Foreign nationals now make up one fifth of Malta’s total population.

Other findings from the 2021 census reveal the islands' ethnic and religious diversity.

Just under 90 per cent of the total population described themselves as Caucasian, while five per cent or approximately 27,000 people, are of Asian origin. Just over one per cent of the population is listed as having multiple ethnicities.

The census reveals that Roman Catholicism remains the most prevalent faith, with nearly 83 per cent of the population belonging to this religious group.

The presence of other religions such as Islam and Orthodox, at slightly below four per cent each, is recorded for the first time in a census.

The data also reveals that five per cent of the population, or just over 23,000 people, do not identify with a religion.

Most people who do not follow a religion tend to be younger, between the ages of 20 and 39, and foreign.

In total, over twice as many non-Maltese do not follow any religion compared to Maltese citizens.

Non-Maltese citizens by gender 2011-2021. Graph: Datawrapper/Times of Malta

Census also reveals migration patterns

The census data also reveals migration patterns across Malta.

A total of 14,822 people migrated to Malta in the year prior to the census, over three times greater than the figure of 4,178 that had been reported in the previous census held in 2011.

Over half of these migrants were non-EU citizens (including British citizens), while just under a third were citizens of countries outside Europe.

Meanwhile, internal migration within Malta does not appear to have increased significantly over the past decade, with 93 per cent of the population living within the same locality one year before the census was held. This figure was just over 95 per cent in the 2011 census.

Findings from the census published last year revealed that since 2011, Malta’s population grew by almost 25 per cent, with an increase of over 10,000 persons each year. This increase was far greater than in any other EU country aside from Luxembourg, which experienced a similar growth rate.

Malta’s population density, already the highest in Europe, reaching 1,649 persons per square kilometre, over 15 times higher than the EU average of 109 persons per square kilometre.

Ethnic background and gender in 2021. Graph: Datawrapper/Times of Malta

270,000 men and 249,500 women

There are now over 270,000 men in Malta compared to 249,500 women, a ratio of 924 women to every 1,000 men. Men also tend to be younger, with an average age of 40.6 compared to 42.8 for women.

Although Maltese women still slightly outnumber Maltese men, a large proportion of foreign citizens are male, at 59 per cent. While this is a slight increase from the from 52 per cent registered in 2011, its impact on the overall population is strongly felt as the number of foreign nationals has increased by over 95,000 people in the past decade.

Gender divide in Malta compared to EU in 2021. Graph: Datawrapper/Times of Malta

Foreign nationals tend to be much younger than Maltese citizens, with an average age of 34.9 compared to the Maltese average of 43.6.

The ratio of Maltese men and women has remained relatively equal across all localities but large differences can be found amongst the non-Maltese population.

There are now nearly twice as many non-Maltese men as women in the Southern Harbour region and the South Eastern region. Foreign men also heavily outnumber their female counterparts in the Northern Harbour, Northern and Western regions.

This gender difference is also reflected amongst the different ethnicities of people in Malta. The data shows that 79 per cent of people of African origin are men, while Arab and Asian men also heavily outnumber women at 67 per cent and 56 per cent respectively. On the other hand, there are an equal number of men and women who identify as Caucasian.

Figures published by JobsPlus last year revealed that over a quarter of Malta’s workforce is non-Maltese. Speaking in 2019, then-prime minister Joseph Muscat warned that those who do not want foreigners in Malta are turning their back on economic growth and social benefits such as pensions.

Male and female population in Malta 2011-2021. Graph: Datawrapper/Times of Malta

Prior to becoming Finance Minister, Clyde Caruana had also championed this economic model, arguing that the rapid influx of foreign labour was necessary to sustain Malta’s economic growth.

Caruana later admitted that this brought about a strain on the country’s infrastructure, education and healthcare.