REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 2019 report on the economic and social situation of Gozo (Malta)
Date: 2019-10-08
Institutions: Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy, European Commission
Subjects: Malta, demographic analysis, economic and social cohesion, economic development, economic situation, labour market, land use, regional disparity, social situation, tourism

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 8.10.2019  COM(2019) 463 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 2019 report on the economic and social situation of Gozo (Malta)  
 
 
2019 REPORT ON THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SITUATION OF GOZO (MALTA) 

Without prejudice to the ongoing negotiations on the Multiannual Financial  Framework 
for the period 2021-2027, and in accordance with Declaration 36 on the island region of 
Gozo annexed to the Treaty of Accession of Malta, the Government of Malta requested 
in  February  2019  the  Commission  to  report  to  the  Council  on  the  economic  and  social 
situation  of  Gozo  and,  in  particular,  on  the  disparities  of  the  social  and  economic 
development  levels  between  Gozo  and  Malta  and  to  propose  appropriate  measures,  to 
enable the further integration of Gozo within the internal market. 

This  report  assesses  the  state  of  development  of  Gozo  and  the  evolution  of  disparities 
within  Malta.  It  provides  an  assessment  by  reviewing  recent  trends  on  a  series  of 
dimensions  and  indicators  relevant  for  the  development  of  Gozo,  i.e.  demography  and 
labour  market,  structure  of  the  economy  and  economic  growth,  geography  and 
accessibility. The paper also provides a comparison of Gozo with the rest of Malta and 
with  other  European  regions.  Finally,  it  analyses  how  Cohesion  policy  addresses  the 
development needs of Gozo. 

This  report  uses  regional  statistics  produced  by  Eurostat  and  by  the  Maltese  Statistical 
Office.  

1.  ANALYSIS OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SITUATION IN GOZO 

1.1.  Geography and land use 

Gozo  is  the  second  most  important  island  of  the  Maltese  archipelago  in  terms  of 
surface  and  population.  It  is  located  5  km  northwest  of  the  island  of  Malta.  The 
island of Comino is located between Malta and Gozo, less than one kilometre away 
from Gozo and it is almost uninhabited1. In terms of land use and land cover2, urban 
fabric  amounts  to  21%  of  Gozo  and  Comino  area,  while  agriculture,  natural  areas 
and  forests  amounts  to  77.5%  of  the  surface.  In  comparison,  the  main  island  of 
Malta  shows  a  slightly  higher  use  of  land  for  urban  use  (23%)  and  for  industrial, 
commercial and transport units (5.7%) than for agriculture, natural areas and forests 
(66.7%).  The  land  use  reflects  the  higher  population  density  and  degree  of 
industrialisation in Malta compared to Gozo, and the prominent role of agriculture 
in the Gozitan economy. 

As regards its statistical classification as a region, Malta  is a country, a NUTS1 and 
a  NUTS2  region.  At  a  NUTS3  level,  it  is  divided  into  two  regions:  the  island  of 
Malta, and the islands of Gozo and Comino.  

1   When referring to the NUTS3 region, the report uses the term “Gozo and Comino”, but since Comino 

is mostly unhabited, the report refers to Gozo to describe the statistical trends. 

2   The  figures  are  taken  from  the  2018  CORINE  Land  Cover  Inventory.  They  do  not  add  up  to  100% 

because some residual classes like dump sites, construction site etc. are not considered.  

1 

 
 
                                                 
Map 1. Land use and land cover in Malta, Gozo and Comino 

Source: CORINE Land Cover inventory 2018. 

1.2.  Population 

As of January 2018, Gozo had 32,723 inhabitants, which represent around 6.9% of 
the  Maltese  population.  The  population  density  of  Gozo  in  2018  was  474.5 
inhabitants  per  km2,  roughly  one  fourth  of  the  density  on  the  island  of  Malta 
(1,793.8 inhabitants per km2 in the same year). Around 21% of the population live 
in Victoria (also known as Rabat), the largest city of the Gozo Island.  

In  absolute  terms,  the  population  in  Gozo  has  increased  from  2006  to  2018  by 
around 1,700 inhabitants. In relative terms, Gozo’s population has increased by an 
average rate of 0.4% per year over the period 2006-2018, compared to a growth rate 
of 1.4% (leading to a population increase of 69,000) for the population resident on 
the  island  of  Malta  over  the  same  period,  also  fuelled  by  a  significant  increase  in 
migration  from  2012  onwards.  This  difference  in  growth  led  to  a  decrease  in  the 
share of Maltese population living in Gozo from 7.7% in 2006 to 6.9% in 2018. 

One  of  the  factors  leading  to  this  evolution  is  the  ageing  of  the  population.  The 
share  of  the  population  aged  65  and  above  living  in  Gozo  has  increased  by  8 
percentage points between 2006 to 2018, compared to an increase of 2 p.p. for the 
island of Malta. Although the two regions show significant ageing trends, the share 
of  working  age  population  (age  15-64)  for  the  island  of  Malta  is  generally  2 
percentage points (p.p.) higher than the same share for the island of Gozo.  

2 

 
 
Graph 1. Evolution of the share of working age population (age 15-64) over the total 
resident population in the regions of Malta, Gozo and Comino, 2006-2018 

71,0%

70,0%

69,0%

68,0%

67,0%

66,0%

65,0%

64,0%

63,0%

62,0%

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Island of Malta

Gozo and Comino

Source: Eurostat 

1.3.  Economic Development 

In  2017,  GDP  per  capita  in  Gozo,  in  Purchasing  Power  Standards  (PPS), 
corresponded  to  60%  of  the  EU-28  average,  a  level  significantly  lower  than  in 
Malta, which is roughly at the EU-28 average. From 2000 to 2011, GDP per capita 
for the island of Malta  remained below the EU average. The gap started to decrease 
as from 2012. In comparison, GDP per capita in Gozo fell relative to the EU average 
between  2000  and  2007.  From  2008  this  downward  trend  was  halted.  The  region 
started converging to the EU average as from 2013, although at a slower pace than 
the main island.  

The gap in relative economic development between the two islands  widened from 
2000  to  2017,  from  26  to  41  percentage  points.  Note  however  that  the  relative 
proximity between the two islands allows workers to commute to the island of Malta 
while living in Gozo. In fact, more than 20% of the Gozo resident workforce works 
on  the  island  of  Malta.  The  GDP  per  capita  measures  economic  activities  on  the 
production  side  and  does  not  take  into  account  household  income.  Therefore,  the 
real economic welfare of Gozitan citizens is underestimated by GDP per capita.  

Regarding the sectoral composition of the Gross Value Added between two regions, 
the economy of Gozo relies generally more on agriculture and fishing (+3 p.p.) and 
construction  sectors  (+5  p.p.)  than  the  island  of  Malta,  and  less  on  financial, 
insurance, real estate and other services (-4 p.p.)   

3 

 
 
 
 
Graph  2.  Evolution  of  GDP  per  capita  in  Purchasing  Power  Standards  in  the 
regions of Malta, Gozo and Comino, 2000-2017 (EU-28 = 100) 

120

100

80

60

40

20

0

2
0
0
0

2
0
0
1

2
0
0
2

2
0
0
3

2
0
0
4

2
0
0
5

2
0
0
6

2
0
0
7

2
0
0
8

2
0
0
9

2
0
1
0

2
0
1
1

2
0
1
2

2
0
1
3

2
0
1
4

2
0
1
5

2
0
1
6

2
0
1
7

Difference Malta - Gozo & Comino

Malta

Gozo & Comino

EU-28

Source: Eurostat 

Graph  3.  Composition  of  2016  Gross  Value  Added  in  the  regions  of  Malta,  Gozo 
and Comino 

Agriculture - NACE A

Manufacturing and energy -
NACE B-E

Construction - NACE F

31% 

Malta 

1% 

Gozo and Comino 

10% 

3% 

4% 

9% 

29% 

21% 

8% 

29% 

Trade, Transport, Accomodation,
Communications - NACE G-J

Financial, insurance, real estate
and other activities - NACE K-N

Public administration, education
and other services - NACE O-U

29% 

25% 

Source: Eurostat 

1.4.  Labour Market 

The evolution of employment was similar in Malta and Gozo over the period 2015-
2017, with annual growth rates between 5% and 6%, and Gozo registering a slightly 
higher increase in employment between 2016 and 2017 compared to Malta. On both 
islands,  the  employment  rate  increased  over  the  same  period,  with  Gozo  showing 
faster growth (around +4 p.p. increases per year) between 2015 and 2017 compared 

4 

 
 
 
 
to  Malta.  In  2017,  the  employment  rate  of  Gozo  (74%)  exceeds  the  one  of  Malta 
(72%). 

The proximity between the two islands and the frequency of ferry connections allow 
commuting  from  Gozo  to  Malta:  when  comparing  employment  by  place  of 
residence  with  employment  by  place  of  work,  more  than  3,500  residents  in  Gozo 
actually  work  on  the  island  of  Malta,  which  corresponds  to  around  22%  of  the 
resident workforce.   

Table 1. Employment by place of residence and by place of work in Malta, Gozo & 
Comino, and employment rate  

Employment by place of 
residence 
Malta  
Gozo  & Comino 

Employment by place of 
Work 
Malta  
Gozo & Comino 

2015 

2016 

2017 

194,329  205,002  216,492 
15,677 
14,678 

13,901 

2015 

2016 

2017 

197,403  208,423  219,998 
12,171 
11,257 

10,827 

Growth 
15/16 
5.5% 
5.6% 

Growth 
15/16 
5.6% 
4.0% 

Growth 
16/17 
5.6% 
6.8% 

Growth 
16/17 
5.6% 
8.1% 

Difference (commuters) 

3,074 

3,421 

3,506 

Employment rate 
Malta  
Gozo & Comino 

69% 
66% 
Employment rate calculated using the population between 15 and 64 as denominator. 

71% 
70% 

72% 
74% 

2015 

2016 

2017 

Source: National Statistics Office, Malta and Eurostat. 

The  composition  of  the  workforce  on  the  two  islands  is  very  similar  to  the 
composition of Gross Value Added: Gozo employs 4 p.p. more people in agriculture 
and  fishing,  and  3  p.p.  more  in  construction  than  Malta,  but  7  p.p.  less  in  the 
financial, insurance, real estate and other services.  

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Graph  4.  Composition  of  2016  Employment  in  the  regions  of  Malta,  Gozo  and 
Comino 

Malta 

1% 

12% 

Gozo and Comino 

5% 

10% 

9% 

31% 

6% 

33% 

31% 

19% 

12% 

31% 

Agriculture - NACE A

Manufacturing and energy -
NACE B-E

Construction - NACE F

Trade, Transport,
Accomodation,
Communications - NACE G-J
Financial, insurance, real estate
and other activities - NACE K-N

Public administration,
education and other services -
NACE O-U

Source: Eurostat 

1.5.  Accessibility and tourism 

Gozo  is  5.3  km  distance  away  from  the  main  island.  The  travel  time  by  ferry 
between these two islands is about 30 minutes in fair weather. As pointed out above, 
many employees commute from Gozo to the main island of Malta, in particular to 
the capital city using frequent sea connections between the two islands. 

The number of sea passengers between the ports of Ċirkewwa in Malta and Mġarr in 
Gozo has increased by almost 60% from 2003 to 2017 and by almost 34% between 
2010 and 2017. This corresponds to an average annual increase of the number of sea 
passengers between the two ports of 3.4%, and  a more noticeable increase is  seen 
from 2013 to 2017, with an annual growth rate of almost 6%.  

Gozo is not only a home to commuters; it also attracts tourists. Similarly to Malta, 
Gozo  registered an increasing trend in the number of tourists  over the period 2012-
2017,  although  slightly  smaller  (+33%  vs  +36%).  The  number  of  tourists  visiting 
and  staying  at  least  one  night  in  Gozo  and  Comino  is  certainly  lower  than  the 
number  of  tourists  visiting  the  island  of  Malta.  However,  in  2017,  they  were  still 
almost three times as many as the resident population of Gozo. Regarding offer, the 
number of bed places in Gozo  increased faster than in Malta, from 1,756 to 2,165 
units between 2012 and 2017 (+23%), compared to around 40,000 units available in 
Malta  (+7%).  However,  the  duration  of  the  stay  is  generally  shorter:  on  average, 
tourists stay for 5 nights in Malta against 3 nights in Gozo and Comino.  

6 

 
 
 
 
Graph 5. Evolution of the number of passengers between the seaports of Ċirkewwa 
and Mġarr (in thousands) 

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

2
0
0
3

2
0
0
4

2
0
0
5

2
0
0
6

2
0
0
7

2
0
0
8

2
0
0
9

2
0
1
0

2
0
1
1

2
0
1
2

2
0
1
3

2
0
1
4

2
0
1
5

2
0
1
6

2
0
1
7

Source: Eurostat 

Table 2. Number of guests and bed places in Malta and Gozo 

Number 
of guests 
Malta 
Gozo 
and 
Comino 

2012 

2013 

2014 

2015 

2016 

2017 

Increase 
12/17 

Average 
Annual 
growth 

1,274,123  1,377,594  1,464,903  1,499,117  1,532,666  1,731,687 

36% 

6.3% 

73,585 

83,051 

86,644 

86,951 

86,866 

97,781 

33% 

5.9% 

2012 

Number 
of bed 
places 
Malta 
Gozo 
and 
Comino 
1,756 
Source: National Statistics Office, Malta. 

2013 
40,895 

38,187 

1,800 

2015 
40,217 

2016 
39,163 

2017 
40,762 

Increase 
12/17 

Average 
Annual 
growth 

7% 

1.3% 

2014 
39,473 

1,855 

1,948 

2,074 

2,165 

23% 

4.3% 

1.6.  Comparison with other European islands  

Compared to other island regions of similar size (in terms of population), GDP per 
capita  in  Gozo  and  Comino  in  PPS  in  2016  was  generally  lower  than  in  other 
islands,  with  the  exception  of  the  Greek  island  regions  of  Lesvos,  Limnos,  Ikaria, 
Samos  and  Chios.  However,  Gozo  and  Comino  are  one  of  the  few  island  regions 
where  GDP  per  capita  has  increased,  especially  in  the  period  after  the  financial 
crisis (2009-2016).  

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table  3.  Evolution  of  GDP  per  capita  in  Purchasing  Power  Standards  in  selected 
island regions (EU-28 = 100) 

EU Country  NUTS 3 Region 
DK 
ES 
ES 
ES 
ES 
ES 
FI 
EL 
EL 
EL 
EL 
EL 
MT 
SE 
UK 
UK 
UK 
Source: Eurostat. 

Bornholm 
Fuerteventura 
Menorca 
El Hierro 
La Gomera 
La Palma 
Åland 
Chios 
Zakynthos 
Ikaria, Samos 
Ithaki, Kefallinia 
Lesvos, Limnos 
Gozo and Comino 
Gotlands län 
Western Isles 
Shetland Islands 
Orkney Islands 

1.7.  Internal disparities 

2002  2009 
87 
88 
85 
87 
87 
80 
144 
73 
104 
79 
94 
74 
51 
93 
88 
127 
95 

88 
132 
103 
72 
85 
66 
151 
66 
104 
65 
89 
64 
55 
98 
88 
135 
95 

Annual 
growth 
rate 
2002-
2016 

Annual 
growth 
rate 
2009-
2016 

0.1% 
-3.1% 
-2.2% 
-0.7% 
-1.4% 
0.2% 
-1.1% 
-2.0% 
-2.3% 
-1.7% 
-2.8% 
-1.6% 
0.1% 
-0.5% 
-1.0% 
-0.1% 
0.0% 

0.3% 
-0.5% 
-1.8% 
-4.1% 
-3.1% 
-2.3% 
-1.6% 
-5.3% 
-4.6% 
-6.1% 
-6.2% 
-5.2% 
1.3% 
-0.2% 
-2.1% 
0.7% 
0.0% 

2016 
89 
85 
75 
65 
70 
68 
129 
50 
75 
51 
60 
51 
56 
92 
76 
133 
95 

For  the  purpose  of  this  report,  regional  disparities  within  NUTS2  regions  are 
measured using GDP per capita at NUTS3 level. In the case of Malta, the islands of 
Malta and Gozo & Comino are two NUTS3 regions being part of a single NUTS2, 
which coincides with the country as well. 

Internal  disparities  can  obviously  not  be  assessed  for  NUTS2  regions  with  no 
NUTS3  subdivision.  In  addition,  measures  of  regional  disparities  are  generally 
sensitive to the number of NUTS3 areas within each NUTS2 region.  

For this  reason,  this  report uses 4 measures of internal  disparity, considering three 
different  sets  of  NUTS2  regions:  1)  all  EU  NUTS2  regions;  2)  NUTS2  regions  in 
transition (where the GDP per capita is between 75% and 90% of the EU average); 
3)  NUTS2  regions  with  a  capital  city,  excluding  the  regions  that  lack  further 
subdivision into NUTS3 areas.  

The four indicators are the following: 

  The Coefficient of Variation: the ratio between the standard deviation of all 
NUTS3 with the average NUTS2 GDP per capita. Out of the four measures, 
this indicator is the least dependent on the number of NUTS3 regions within 
the NUTS2 region under consideration. 

8 

 
  The  Gini  index:  an  index  between  0  and  1,  where  0  corresponds  to  a 
situation  of  perfect  equality  across  NUTS3  regions,  and  1  to  a  situation 
where all the GDP is concentrated in one NUTS3 region. 

  The  Theil  index:  an  index  that  returns  values  closer  to  zero  as    internal 

disparities decrease.  

  The  Min/Max  ratio:  a  simple  ratio  between  the  GDP  per  capita  in  the 
NUTS3 region with the lowest value and the NUTS3 region with the highest 
value,  within  the  same  NUTS2  region.  Out  of  the  four  measures,  this 
indicator is the most sensitive to the number of NUTS3 regions within each 
NUTS2 area.  

Top rankings correspond to regions with low levels of internal disparities: rankings 
are calculated in ascending order for the coefficient of variation, the Gini index and 
the Theil index and in descending order for the Min/Max ratio.  

The results for Malta are shown in table 4. 

When  ranking  across  the  237  NUTS2  regions  having  NUTS3  subdivisions,  the 
Theil index and the coefficient of variation return approximately similar results for 
Malta (respectively 99th/237 and 86th/237). The Gini index seems to underestimate 
economic  disparities  within  Malta  (33rd/237),  while  the  Min/Max  ratio  seem  to 
overestimate them (164th/237).  

The  rankings  across  the  46  NUTS2  in  transition  show  a  slightly  clearer  picture. 
Once again, the Theil index and the coefficient of variation return ranks for Malta 
which are very close (respectively 26th/46 and 24th/46), the Gini index puts Malta at 
the 11th place, while the Min/Max ratio at the 39th. 

Lastly,  Malta  is  also  a  capital  region,  therefore  a  third  region  selection  ranks  it 
among  the  other  15  capital  regions  in  Europe  with  more  than  1  NUTS3  region. 
Malta ranks 1st according to the coefficient of variation, the Gini index and the Theil 
index,  and  second  according  to  the  Min/Max  ratio,  therefore  performing  generally 
better  than  all  the  other  capital  regions  in  the  EU  when  it  comes  to  internal 
disparities.   

9 

 
 
 
Table  4.  Comparative  analysis  of  regional  disparities  in  terms  of  2016  GDP  per 
capita for Malta, based on 4 different indicators and 3 different rankings selections 

Values of the 4 indicators for measuring 
regional inequalities – Malta 

Coefficient 
of 
variation 
0,11 

Gini 
index 
0,03 

Theil 
index 
0,01 

Min/Max 
Ratio 
0,57 

Ranking of Malta among all NUTS2 regions 
in the EU with more than one NUTS3 
region (237 regions) 

Coefficient 
of 
variation 
86 

Gini 
index 
33 

Theil 
index 
99 

Min/Max 
Ratio 
164 

Ranking of Malta among all NUTS2 regions 
in transition in the EU with more than one 
NUTS3 region (46 regions) 

Coefficient 
of 
variation 
24 

Gini 
index 
11 

Theil 
index 
26 

Min/Max 
Ratio 
39 

Ranking  of  Malta  among  all  NUTS2  capital 
regions  in  the  EU  with  more  than  one 
NUTS3 region (15 regions)* 
Coefficient 
of 
variation 
1 

Min/Max 
Ratio 
2 

Gini 
index 
1 

Theil 
index 
1 

*Capital regions  for the following countries: BG, DK, EE, EL, FR, HR, IE, IT, LV, MT, NL, PL, 
RO, SI and UK. 

Source: DG REGIO calculation based on Eurostat data. 

2. 

IMPLEMENTATION OF COHESION POLICY IN GOZO 

For the programming periods 2007/2013 and 2014/2020,  respectively 11% and 10% of 
the  overall  budget  available  under  the  ERDF,  ESF  and  CF  have  focused  on  territorial 
investments  in  Gozo.  This  is  slightly  above  the  proportion  of  the  Gozitan  population 
(around  7%),  the  main  objective  being  to  reduce  disparities  with  Malta,  as  reported  in 
Chapter 1. 

The main investment areas for 2007-2013 were Investing in competitiveness and quality 
of life and Empowering people for more jobs  and a better quality of life, amounting to 
107.3 million  EUR  altogether.  For  the  period  2014/2020,  the  amount  paid  as  of  1  May 
2019 was 95.6 million EUR. 

Interventions  in  Gozo  cover  a  wide  range  of  areas,  with  significant  budgets  being 
invested  on  e.g.  road,  transport,  water  and  renewable  energy  infrastructure,  waste 

10 

 
 
management  facilities  and  rehabilitation  of  historical  sites,  in  particular  of  the 
“Cittadella”, to which 12 million EUR of EU funds have been dedicated . Gozo has also 
benefitted  from  EMFF  funding  in  support  of  the  fishing  industry,  to  modernise  the 
fishermen’s  facilities  located  at  the  designated  fishing  ports  of  Mgarr  and  Xlendi, 
together with the introduction of new related amenities. 

Through  79  projects  amounting  to  EUR  12.4  million,  ESF  also  provided  support  to 
increase  the  participation  to  quality  and  labour  market  education  and  training,  career 
guidance, enhancing employability and adaptability of the workforce, social inclusion of 
disadvantaged groups. 

For the next programming period 2021/2027, the overall EU contribution of  the ERDF, 
the  ESF+  and  the  Cohesion  Fund  for  the  entire  Maltese  archipelago3  amounts  to  EUR 
672.8 million, a 5% decrease compared to EUR 708 million for 2014/2020. This reflects 
the successful  catching-up process  to  the EU average in  the last  years.  The discussions 
regarding  the  investment  priorities  for  programmes  for  the  2021-2027  programming 
period  will  build  upon  the  Country  Report  Malta  20194  of  27  February  2019,  and  the 
Country Specific Recommendations adopted by the Council on 9 July 2019. It does not 
pre-empt  the  important  question  of  the  share  of  the  funds  that  will  be  allocated  for 
Gozo/Comino. 

3.  CONCLUSIONS 

The statistical analysis of  this report shows that the GDP per capita differences between 
Gozo and the main island of Malta  have slightly increased over time. Various elements 
can  explain  this  trend.  Importantly,  the  island  of  Malta  has  a  more  service-oriented 
economy  than  the  island  of  Gozo,  which  relies  more  on  agriculture,  fishing  and 
construction activities. With this different economic orientation, the economic growth of 
Malta has outpaced that of Gozo.  

In recent years, Gozo was able to catch up with the EU average faster than other island 
regions in the EU. This may be due to the spill over effects of the proximity to the main 
island of Malta, in particular commuting and the rise in tourism in the region.  

When comparing the economic situation of Malta with other transition regions in the EU, 
internal disparities are average when comparing Malta to other regions in transition. 

Additionally,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  GDP  per  capita  as  an  indicator 
underestimates the real economic welfare of the residents of Gozo, given the significant 
proportion of workers commuting to the island of Malta. 

There  has  been  progress  in  terms  of  accessibility,  for  the  benefit  of  both  tourism  and 
Gozitan  workers  commuting  to  Malta.  Cohesion  policy  has  contributed  to  this  success, 
through significant investments carried out in road and maritime transport infrastructures, 
energy and health facilities, and the support to renovation of cultural heritage. 

3   Annex XXIII of the Commission Proposal for a Regulation - COM(2018) 375 final. 
4   SWD(2019) 1017 final. 

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In  the  framework  of  the  preparation  of  the  2021/2027  partnership  agreement  and 
operational programmes, the Maltese authorities are invited to consider investments and 
the possible structural measures needed, both at national and at Gozitan levels, to reduce 
the GDP per capita gap. Further success in supporting the catching up process of Gozo 
will  depend  on  taking  into  account  Gozo’s  specificities,  including  the  fast  ageing 
population. 

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