Malta's population at the end of last year was 421,230, an increase of 0.9 per cent over the previous year despite a 1.2 per cent drop in the number of births. At 95 per cent, the Maltese population accounted for the majority, the NSO said today.
Persons in the 0-17 age bracket made up 18 per cent of the total population. The share of persons aged 65 and over stood at 17 per cent.
Out of the 1,073 births outside marriage, 17.3 per cent involved teenage mothers
The total number of live births registered during 2012 decreased by 1.2 per cent when compared to the previous year and stood at 4,231. The largest share of registered births, 33.6 per cent, involved mothers aged between 30 and 34, while 212 births, or 5 per cent, occurred to teenage mothers. Out of the 1,073 births outside marriage, 17.3 per cent involved teenage mothers, while 32.2 per cent involved mothers aged 20-24.
The total number of deaths during the year under review reached 3,418 – up by 4.7 per cent over the previous year. Sixty-four per cent of these deaths involved persons aged 75 and over. Deaths occurring to persons aged 15-19 dropped by 72.7 per cent when compared to 2011 levels.
The total number of registered marriages during 2012 stood at 2,823, up by 10.2 per cent when compared to the previous year. Of these, 41.4 per cent were civil marriages, which also rose by 21.2 per cent over 2011. Nearly a quarter of these marriages involved spouses aged 25-29.
The total number of registered marriages during 2012 stood at 2,823, up by 10.2 per cent when compared to the previous year.
During 2012, the Public Registry registered 554 separations. Of these, 90.4 per cent involved marriages where both spouses were Maltese nationals. A total of 441 divorces were granted by the Maltese Authorities, while a further 69 divorces were obtained abroad and later recognised by the Maltese Authorities.
Just over half of these divorces involved couples who had been married for more than 19 years, while a third involved couples whose marriage had lasted between 10 and 19 years.
In addition, 133 annulments were registered during 2012, of which 66.9 per cent involved civil marriages. Another 40.6 per cent of these cases occurred to couples who had been married between 10 and 19 years