LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – A new Eurobarometer survey reveals that young Maltese are the most optimistic about the future of the European Union, with 92 percent expressing a positive opinion about the bloc, well above the EU average of 61 percent.
The survey, which gathers young Europeans’ views on the challenges and priorities of the EU, shows that young Maltese are not only hopeful about the future of the EU, but are also very positive about its impact on their lives.
The survey, which focuses on young people between the ages of 16 and 30, found that nearly half of Maltese youth (48 percent) are “very optimistic” about the future of the EU, while 44 percent are “somewhat optimistic.” This represents the highest percentage of optimism in the EU, with only 15 percent of EU youth sharing the same sentiment. In contrast, 31 percent of EU youth express pessimism about the future of the bloc, while only 5 percent of Maltese youth are “somewhat pessimistic” and none are “very pessimistic.”
Maltese youth are also among the most likely to believe that the EU has a positive impact on their society. According to the survey, 86 percent of Maltese youth believe that the EU has a positive effect on their community, with 50 percent considering it “very positive.” This is the highest percentage in the EU. In comparison, only 19 percent of young people in the EU believe the EU has a very positive impact.
While optimism is a distinctive feature of Maltese youth’s view of the EU, the survey also highlights their belief in the concrete benefits the EU brings to their daily lives. A significant percentage (48 percent) associate the EU with opportunities such as Erasmus+, DiscoverEU and the European Solidarity Corps, far exceeding the EU average of 30 percent. In contrast, Maltese youth are less likely to link the EU to the freedom to travel: 27 percent of them associate the EU with this, compared to 39 percent of their peers in the EU.
Regarding EU priorities, the survey shows that Maltese youth are most concerned about irregular migration (27 percent), followed by climate change (25 percent) and economic issues (23 percent). In contrast, security and defense is the top priority for EU youth overall (31 percent), followed by climate change (27 percent) and public health (26 percent).
The survey also reveals that while inflation is the top concern for young people across the EU (41 percent), only 26 percent of Maltese youth share this concern. In contrast, climate change (29 percent) and EU security (27 percent) are their top concerns for the future.
– IPA Agency photo –
(ITALPRESS).
