A total revision of family leave policies is essential if Malta is to address what has been described as “the greatest challenge of our time”, its rock bottom fertility.
Anna Borg, associate professor at the Centre for Labour Studies at the University of Malta, spoke to Times of Malta in reaction to Finance Minister Clyde Caruana’s recent remarks, in which he called Malta’s low birth rate the country’s most pressing long-term issue.
“For starters, we need to revise family leave policies, e.g. extend maternity and paternity leave, revise parental leave, and ensure that parents have a solution when their children get sick,” Borg said.
However, she stressed that changes to leave entitlements alone will not solve the problem and she called for a strategic team consisting of experts and key people to lead this forward and a national policy to go with it.
“We need a national strategy for family support which is well funded, with clear objectives and targets to solve the identified challenges that couples are facing when trying to combine paid work with the rearing of children.”
Borg said the issue is complex and must be tackled from several angles.
“Addressing the financial aspect is important, but it’s not enough. We can’t take a sporadic approach; this won’t work. We need a proper strategy that considers the needs of various groups and different realities of different families.”
She also encouraged employers to explore flexible work options and shorter working weeks.
“Focus on productivity rather than hours worked or location. We should prioritise the output of the activity instead.”
Borg warned that unless the issue is tackled holistically, Malta risks falling short.
“We have not taken gender equality seriously, and if we continue down this path, we’ll be in trouble as a society. Without a proper gender balance, all of this is pointless.”
She pointed to childcare as an example, noting that despite significant government investment in childcare services, many parents remain reluctant to use them.
“This can’t just be a responsibility for mothers. There must be opportunities for men to take an active role in caregiving,” she said.
This cultural imbalance is not unique to Malta.
“In many Mediterranean countries like Italy, Spain, and Greece, where motherhood is glorified, there isn’t enough support for women as individuals.”
Borg said the pressure in these societies typically falls more heavily on mothers, as is also the case in Malta.
“This is one of the reasons for the low fertility rates there today. Gender inequality is not cost-neutral; this is a clear trend.”
Studies show that in countries with greater gender equality, fertility rates tend to be higher.
“We need to do more because the stakes are high. We can’t just address the financial side; we also need to address the cultural side.”
She also called for more education around gender roles and positive representation of stay-at-home fathers and couples who share caregiving duties equally.
A spokesperson for the Parliamentary Secretariat for Social Dialogue pointed to the Social Plan for the Family (2025–2030), a policy document published earlier this year, a year after Borg’s own study for the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality.
The government is proposing several initiatives to boost the birth rate, including awareness campaigns, expanded fertility treatment access, and new leave donation schemes. A National Task Force on Educational Pathways and Family Planning is scheduled for launch by 2027, with family-centred educational campaigns starting in 2026.
One proposal under consideration is a vacation leave donation scheme, which would allow workers to gift unused leave to colleagues welcoming a child.
Other proposals include population registers to track fertility trends, increased support for extracurricular activities, expanded housing schemes for families, and broader access to IVF and other treatments by 2028.
Finance Minister Clyde Caruana suggested earlier this month that the upcoming budget may include measures that reward larger families.
The Opposition has said it would like to see parental leave extended to a full year and has also called for a specific ‘Parent 2’ tax band to be introduced.
Caruana had hinted at the introduction of such a tax band in a parliamentary speech he gave last February.
Malta currently has the lowest birth rate in Europe, according to a recent Eurostat report. The country’s fertility rate stands at 1.06, meaning each woman is having just over one child, far below the replacement rate of 2.1.