The EU-wide Emotional Support Helpline, 116123, is now available also in Malta, offering emotional support to callers suffering from loneliness, those who find themselves in a state of psychological crisis, and those who require emotional support due to various life situations that they may be encountering.

The Foundation for Social Welfare Services said that the European Commission had laid down that that all EU countries should reserve the numbers beginning with 116 for services of social value across all EU member states, with 116123 particularly being assigned for emotional support helplines and meeting a common description across all EU member states.

The Emotional Support Helpline in Malta will be operating on a 24-hour basis, 7 days a week, all year round. All calls originating from fixed lines will be free of charge.

Calls received on 116123 will be re-routed to the already existing structure of the Appoġġ service Supportline 179. The service is available for all local and foreign citizens in Malta.

"The objective of having one international number is so that European citizens would now be able to reach such service by using the same recognisable number in all member states," the foundation said.

Supportline 179 is a 24 hour free telephone service offered by Aġenzija Appoġġ. It has been running by a team of professionally trained volunteers, under the supervision of Appoġġ professionals, for the past 14 years. Through the amalgamation with the emotional helpline, the service currently provided will be open to callers from other EU member states and will offer confidential emotional support to any individual, in particular those who are socially isolated, vulnerable, at risk, and victims of any form of abuse.

Aġenzija Appoġġ ( www.appogg.gov.mt. ) forms part of the Foundation for Social Welfare Services which also incorporates Aġenzija Sedqa (www.sedqa.gov.mt) and Aġenzija Sapport (www.sapport.gov.mt).