https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/16671 2026-04-11T14:20:48Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/33781 Title: Estimating the impact of structural reforms to increase the female participation rate in Malta Authors: Micallef, Brian Abstract: Malta registered the largest increase in the female participation rate among European countries since 2008. This increase was driven by various policy initiatives aimed to attract more females to the labour market but also by the changing role of women in society. Furthermore, at 53.8% in 2015, the female participation rate in Malta still remains relatively low by European standards, suggesting further catching-up potential. The trend increase in participation, driven mostly by females, is estimated to have contributed, on average, to 0.8 percentage points per annum to Malta's potential GDP between 2008 and 2015. The impact of reforms is calculated by adjusting the post-2008 participation rate to long run trends in Maltese society, as well as using a cohort model that accounts for the changing demographics and education attainment of the workforce. The median impact of the estimates presented in this paper suggests that around half of the increase in the female participation rate is attributable to reforms. These reforms are estimated to have raised potential GDP growth in Malta by around 0.3 percentage point per annum between 2008 and 2015. 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/33780 Title: What makes pension reforms sustainable? Authors: Grech, Aaron George Abstract: Policymakers pushing pension reforms have tended to justify changes on the basis that they would make systems more sustainable by lowering future spending on pensions. This is a rather narrow interpretation of sustainability that fails to consider that other fiscal programs may need to accommodate the impact of reforms that reduce pension system adequacy. In this light, this article argues that in order to correctly assess the sustainability of pension reforms, one needs to adopt a more holistic framework that encapsulates the interaction between pension system goals and constraints. In a number of countries, reforms focused solely on reducing future spending were followed by reforms that restored generosity. A holistic approach to assess pension sustainability could help limit this cycle of reform and increase trust in pension systems. 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/33779 Title: Did Malta's accession to the EU raise its potential growth? : a focus on the foreign workforce Authors: Grech, Aaron George Abstract: This paper evaluates the impact on Malta's potential output growth caused by increased migration. Administrative data show that the proportion of foreign workers has risen from 1.3% of the workforce in 2000 to 10.1% in 2014. While the bulk of these migrants are in managerial, professional, and technical occupations, there are a growing number in blue-collar occupations, along with clerical or auxiliary jobs. Migrant workers is concentrated in certain sectors, with half of them in (1) entertainment and recreation, (2) professional services and administrative support, and (3) hotels and restaurants. The estimates presented here suggest that from 2010 to 2014, foreign workers contributed annually to 0.6 percentage points of potential output growth, helping to boost it to an average of 2.5% per annum, one of the highest in the Euro area, and slightly above the average observed during the years immediately preceding Malta's admission to the European Union 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/33778 Title: Savings and investment behaviour in the euro area Editors: Palenzuela, Diego Rodriguez; Dees, Stephane Abstract: Although monetary union created the conditions for improving economic and financial integration in the euro area, in the context of the financial and sovereign crises, it has also been accompanied by the emergence of severe imbalances in savings and investment, credit and housing booms in some countries and the allocation of resources towards less productive sectors. The global financial crisis and the euro area sovereign debt crisis then led to major and abrupt adjustments as the risks posed by the large imbalances materialised. Although the institutional shortcomings in the EU that permitted the emergence of imbalances have been largely addressed since 2008, the adjustment process is not yet complete. From a macroeconomic perspective, the imbalances in the external accounts have led to the accumulation of high levels of external liabilities that need to be reduced, which, in turn, is weakening investment and therefore weighing on growth prospects and growth potential. From a macroprudential perspective, the lingering imbalances have added to systemic risk and rendered the euro area more vulnerable to risks. This Occasional Paper analyses the dynamic patterns in macroeconomic imbalances primarily from the former perspective, addressing in particular the connections between macroeconomic and sectoral adjustments of imbalances and the challenges for economic growth and performance over a longer horizon. 2016-01-01T00:00:00Z