Introduction:
PThe European Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) survey is an annual exercise undertaken by the National Statistics Office (NSO) among persons residing in private households in Malta and Gozo. The survey collects several indicators related to general health and well-being. In the 2021 wave, additional indicators were included specifically to measure the extent to which households can afford certain items for their children who were under 16 years of age.
Key facts:
• In 2021, the majority of persons living in private households perceived their general health as being good (73 per cent), while 31 per cent of respondents stated that they suffer from chronic illnesses or conditions.
• Males (76 per cent), were more likely to perceive their general health as good. Those who were at-risk-of-poverty perceived their general health as being worse than those not at risk.
• On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents ‘not satisfied at all’, and 10 represents ‘completely satisfied’, respondents reported an average score of 8.6 with regard to their satisfaction with their personal relationships with family and friends. A mean score of 7.6 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their current job, and a mean score of 7.1 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their overall life. The lowest mean score was reported with regard to respondents’ satisfaction with their financial situation, at 6.
• Those who were not at-risk-of-poverty reported higher mean scores with regard to well-being characteristics, when compared to those who were at-risk-of-poverty. Similarly, respondents with the highest equivalised income also reported higher mean scores when compared to those with the lowest equivalised income.
• Most respondents reported they felt calm and peaceful (42 per cent) and happy (49 per cent) most of the time. Feelings of nervousness and agitation were sometimes experienced by 33 per cent of the respondents. Feelings of downheartedness and depression and feelings of loneliness were experienced none of the time by 52 per cent and 60 per cent of the respondents, respectively.
• Most households stated they were able to provide their children (under 16 years) with various items, including a suitable place to study or do homework (96 per cent), indoor games (96 per cent), some new clothes (94 per cent), age-appropriate books (94 per cent), and two pairs of properly fitting shoes (94 per cent).
Health indicators
In 2021, 73.0 per cent of the persons living in private households perceived their general health as being good (Chart 1). Males were more likely to perceive their general health as being good (75.7 per cent), when compared to their female counterparts (70.0 per cent) (Table 1). A little under a third of respondents (31.2 per cent) stated that they suffer from chronic illnesses or conditions¹ (Table 2). Most individuals reported that they did not have any limitations in their daily activities because of health problems, with only 16.7 per cent indicating otherwise (Table 3).
¹ Chronic illness or conditions may include arthritis, allergies, high blood pressure, recurring migraine, chronic anxiety or depression, diabetes, and asthma.
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Chart 1. Self-perceived general health status by year
No Data Found
Chart 2. Share of persons suffering from chronic illnesses or conditions by sex
Reference period: 2019-2021
No Data Found
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Chart 3. Share of persons with limited activities because of health problems
by sex and year
No Data Found
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
The majority of individuals did not report having unmet needs for medical or dental examination or treatment, with only 4.3 per cent of individuals reporting otherwise. This was an increase when compared to 2020 (3.0 per cent) and 2019 (2.2 per cent) (Table 4). Females were more likely to report an unmet need for a medical or dental examination or treatment at 4.9 per cent. This was also an increase when compared to 2020 (2.8 per cent) and 2019 (2.3 per cent) (Chart 4).
Chart 4. Share of persons who reported unmet needs for medical or dental examination/treatment
by sex and year
No Data Found
The at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion rate (AROPE) defines the proportion/number of people who are at-risk-of-poverty or severely materially and socially deprived, or living in households with very low work intensity. In 2021, people who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were less likely to perceive their general health as being good. In fact, only 56.4 per cent of the persons who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion perceived their general health as good, compared to 77.0 per cent of those respondents who were not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion (Table 1).
When considering the main predicators of ill health and chronic illness, females, individuals over 65 years of age, and individuals at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion, were more likely to report suffering from chronic illnesses or conditions, and to experience limitations because of health problems. Such trends were also observed in 2020 and 2019 (Tables 2 and 3).
Well-being indicators
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents not satisfied at all, and 10 represents completely satisfied, an average score of 8.6 was reported by respondents with regard to their satisfaction with their personal relationships with family and friends. A mean score of 7.6 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their current job, and a mean score of 7.1 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their overall life. The lowest average score was reported with regard to respondents’ satisfaction with their financial situation, at 6.8. Respondents between 16 and 29 years of age reported a higher mean score with regard to overall life satisfaction (7.4), when compared to respondents aged 65 years and over (6.8). The highest mean score with regard to personal relationship satisfaction was reported by respondents aged between 18 and 29 years (8.8). Respondents who were at risk-of-poverty or social exclusion reported lower average scores with regard to their satisfaction with overall life, financial situation, current job, and personal relationships, when compared to those not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion (Table 5a).
The National Equivalised Income (NEI) of a household is defined as the household’s total disposable income divided by its ‘equivalent size’ (also referred to as consumption units). The NEI considers the size and age distribution of household members. In 2021, people within the highest equivalised income bracket reported higher mean values when compared to people within the lowest equivalised income bracket (Table 5a).
Chart 5. Perceived levels of satisfaction for certain well-being characteristics
Reference year: 2021
No Data Found
In general, respondents reported feelings of calmness and peacefulness (41.6 per cent) and happiness (49.0 per cent). On the other hand, feelings of nervousness and agitation were characteristics sometimes experienced by 32.5 per cent of the respondents (Chart 6).
Females were more likely to report that, most of the time, they experienced feelings of nervousness and agitation (16.6 per cent) and downheartedness and depression (5.5 per cent). On the other hand, males were more likely to report feelings of calmness and peacefulness (43.7 per cent) and happiness (50.0 per cent), most of the time. Respondents aged 65 years and over were more likely to feel, most of the time, nervous and agitated (15.7 per cent) and downhearted and depressed (5.8 per cent). Meanwhile, respondents between 16 and 17 years of age were more likely to feel calm and peaceful (45.9 per cent) and happy (56.9 per cent), most of the time (Table 6a).
Respondents who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were more likely to report they felt nervous and agitated (5.6 per cent), downhearted and depressed (2.5 per cent), and lonely (3.4 per cent), all of the time, when compared to those not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion (Table 6a).
Chart 6. Share of persons by frequency of feelings regarding certain quality-of-life characteristics
Reference year: 2021
No Data Found
In 2021, most individuals (86.5 per cent) felt that, if needed, they would receive material or non-material help² from family, friends, colleagues, or other persons they knew (Table 7).
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents do not trust at all, and 10 represents trust completely, on average, the extent to which people trust others was reported at 5.1. On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents not at all excluded, and 10 represents completely excluded, individuals seemed to perceive themselves as not being excluded from society. In fact, the mean score with regard to feelings of exclusion from society was reported at 2.2 (Table 8).
² Material help includes money, loan, or objects, whereas non-material help includes someone to talk to, help with doing something or collecting something.
Social indicators
In 2021, based on the information reported by their parents and/or guardians, most children under 16 years of age residing in private households had very good general health (62.8 per cent) and, were not experiencing any limitations because of health problems (98.6 per cent) (Charts 7 and 8). In addition, according to their parents and/or guardians, most children under 16 years had no unmet needs for medical (98.3 per cent) and dental examinations (98.9 per cent) (Chart 9). Most of the households were able to provide children (under 16 years) living within that household with various items, including a suitable place to study or do homework (95.8 per cent), indoor games (95.7 per cent), some new clothes (93.8 per cent), age appropriate books (93.6 per cent), and two pairs of properly fitting shoes (93.6 per cent) (Chart 10).
Chart 7. Share of persons by their perception of the general-health of the children in the household
Reference year: 2021
No Data Found
Chart 8. Share of persons by their perception of restricted participation in activities by the children in the household because of health problems
2021
No Data Found
Chart 9. Share of persons reporting unmet needs for medical and dental examination/treatment for the children in the household
Reference year: 2021
No Data Found
Chart 10. Share of households by their ability to afford certain items for the children in the household
Additional Tables and Charts
Methodological Notes
The EU-SILC sample follows a rotational design whereby every household is surveyed for four consecutive years. This sampling methodology enhances consistency and thus allows for high quality cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis.
In 2021 the gross sample size was 4,724 households. Of these, 117 households were ineligible for the survey (i.e. addresses that did not actually exist, could not be located, non-residential addresses, permanently vacant dwellings or institutional households). Consequently, 4,607 households were approached for the interview. Of these, 4,038 completed the survey, resulting in a household response rate of 88 per cent. These households comprised 10,110 residents, of whom 8,781 were aged 16 and over.
The population figure used to gross up and to calibrate EU-SILC data refers to one calendar year prior to the survey year. Consequently, the population in EU-SILC 2021 refers to the number of persons living in private households as at end of 2020 which was estimated at 507,822.
- A person is defined as a dependent child if s/he is:
- under 18, or;
- 18-24 years old and is economically inactive and living with at least one parent.
- Otherwise, the person is referred to as an adult.
Equivalised disposable income (referred to also as national equivalised income) is defined as the household’s total disposable income divided by its “equivalent household size”, to take account of the size and composition of the household, and is attributed to each household member. For example, a household with two adults and two children aged less than 14, would have an equivalised household size of (1+0.5+0.3+0.3) = 2.1. If the total disposable income earned by the household is €20,000, then the household equivalised income would result in (€20,000/2.1) = €9,523.
The at-risk-of-poverty threshold is also referred to as the at-risk-of-poverty line or, simply, the poverty line. This is equivalent to 60 per cent of the median national equivalised income of persons living in private households.
The at-risk-of-poverty rate refers to the share of persons with an equivalised disposable income below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold.
5. Material and social deprivation
- The survey revealed that in 2021, the majority of persons living in private households perceived their general health as being good (73 per cent), with around 31 per cent of people stating that they suffer from any chronic illnesses or conditions.
- Most individuals reported having feelings of calmness and peacefulness (42 per cent) and happiness (49 per cent) most of the time. On the other hand, 33 per cent of respondents said that they experienced feelings of nervousness and agitation sometimes.
- Most of the households were able to provide their children (under 16 years) with various items, including a suitable place to study or do homework (96 per cent), indoor games (96 per cent), some new clothes (94 per cent), age appropriate books (94 per cent), and two pairs of properly fitting shoes (94 per cent).
