Over the coming days, the government will help repatriate another 500 people to countries that include Colombia, Spain, Albania and Poland, Foreign Affairs Minister Evarist Bartolo said.

In a Facebook post, Bartolo said these are workers who lost their jobs due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

So far, 1,500 people have been repatriated to Greece, France, Turkey, Spain, the UK, Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia, Serbia, North Macedonia and Italy.

Some 3,131 third country nationals have asked to be repatriated, including 306 children.

2,269 EU nationals, including 350 children, have also asked for assistance to go back to their countries, he said.

4,200 people were repatriated in March.

Bartolo said this raises the question as to what type of economy we will have after Covid-19.

"Before the pandemic, the economy was growing steadily, creating some 11,000 jobs yearly.

Only around 4,000 would be taken up by Maltese people, due the low birth rate. The other 7,000 would be taken up by foreign workers."

The population jumped by around 25% over the past few years, he said, with the arrival of some 100,000. The figure includes foreign workers and their relatives.

They helped boost the economy and strengthen pensions and social services, but the population boom also had an effect on property and rent prices, traffic, schools and hospitals, Bartolo said.

The last time the population increased by a quarter was when the Knights of St John came to Malta, he pointed out.

"The arrival of so many foreigners also left an effect on the Maltese, with some starting to feel like foreigners in their own country. It is not easy to find a balance. To boost the economy, you need more workers than the country is producing. To improve tourism, which provides countless jobs, we brought 2.8 million tourists last year. There are also around 4,000 migrants living in Malta."

Bartolo said that some countries experience tensions between locals and tourists, between locals and foreign workers or between locals and migrants. "In Malta, we had all three simultaneously. There must be a balance to avoid social tensions."

The Foreign Minister said the mixing of cultures and diversity are positive but can also make life more difficult and complicated.

Bartolo said one of the challenges we have is to learn how to live with each other with respect towards the laws. "This is not easy, as it is easier to live with those who are 'like you.' It is also not impossible for people to learn to live together, but there must be a balance, because to become more overcrowded is not wise."