Statement of Malta at the UNGA72

Women/Gender Equality: “We have put human rights, equality and the empowerment at the forefront of our political agenda, and in particular on the priority issues of LGBTIQ rights and gender equality. We redefined marriage to grant full equality and a fair gender neutral essence. All this has been complemented by amendments to our Constitution to protect against discrimination on the basis of 'sexual orientation' and 'gender identity'. These individual choices should be as significant as the colour of one's eyes.”

Women/Gender Equality: “The economic and political empowerment of our citizens, regardless of their gender is a priority for us. We have been gradually introducing measures to help reconcile work and familial responsibilities. We are proud to be the only European country to provide universal free childcare to all working people, an initiative which has liberated the potential of so many women in our society. We want to ensure more gender-balanced political representation coupled with recent initiatives to increase youth participation by lowering voting age in general and European elections from 18 to t 6, after already lowered voting age in local elections.”