The number of persons registered on the National Registry of Persons with Disability in 2016 stood at 17,451, a report issued by the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability said.

The number of persons registered is higher by age group. 938 children aged between 0-16 were registered. In 2016, 5,676 persons aged between 17-59, and 10,751 persons aged 60+ were registered.

Commissioner for the Rights of Persons with Disability Oliver Scicluna, speaking with The Malta Independent, was asked about the rise in the number registered corresponding to higher age brackets. He said that while there are acquired disabilities, there are also certain conditions which are disabling which begin to show at a later stage. As an example, he mentioned hidden disabilities like multiple sclerosis and fibromyalgia. “It’s not just accidents. There is another important factor one must note. Not everyone with a disability would be eligible to take benefits and thus not every person with disability registers as a person with disability.”

Persons on the register would also not include all minor disabilities, such as those with an amputated finger, but would, for example, include those persons who registered as having constant problems following a heart surgery

The statistics provided in the annual report are also divided by type of disability. The totals here are bigger than the total number of persons registered as some would have more than one disability type. There were 14,805 registered physical disabilities in 2016, while 3,223 had a registered intellectual disability. In addition 1,992 had a psychological disability.

1,511 persons were registered as having a hearing disability, while 1,673 had a disability related to sight.               

The statistics show a rise in persons registering as having a disability since over the years, disability has become less of a stigma. As an example, in 1994, there were 3,330 persons registered with a disability, rising to 11,532 in 2008. Commissioner Scicluna believes that the rise is partly due to stigma surrounding disability being less prevalent.

Commissioner Scicluna said: “There are still conditions which are stigmatised, like mental health issues.”

Asked whether this is the main reason for the increase in persons registering as being disabled since 1994, he said: “There is more awareness for sure. Awareness has the benefit of breaking down barriers. That benefit creates a society that does not stigmatise conditions. Today if you share a post on Facebook about something related to disability, one sees many positive remarks.”

“From here alone you can tell how people are more aware than they were in the past and thus the stigma is decreasing.”

Turning to abuse of benefits and if the system could be abused, he said “we live in a small community and today Facebook has an impact. Before people would hide behind their blinds to look, today they have Facebook. When certain cases had gained traction, regarding blue badge holders, we tried and are trying to determine if the persons in question need the badge or not."

He said that he does not permit abuse. "I am a person with disability, a blue badge holder myself, and thus I definitely don’t want a disaster out there.” 

He mentioned that there are persons with disability who suffer from conditions that don't show on the outside, mentioning fibromyalgia as an example. “It is still disabling, and I will say it is more disabling than my disability. They could wake up ok one day, and then spend the next three days in pain." 

"Prejudice does not do any good, let the authorities handle abuses and I can confirm we take abuse very seriously."

In 2016, 2,281 new applications for a Special Identity Card were filed. This card is issued to persons with disability who are registered with the CRPD and opt for it. The total number of persons with disability who hold this card stood at 14,236 in 2016.

In addition, there were a total of 8,894 blue badge holders. The blue badge is a service administered by the CRPD, through which it issues the Blue Badge to persons with severe mobility restrictions.