Accepting the invitation of the President of the Republic of Malta, the civil authorities and the Catholic Church of the country, Pope Francis will make an Apostolic Journey to Malta from 2 to 3 April 2022, a statement by the Curia read.
"The Pope will visit Valletta, Rabat, Floriana and Hal Far, and the island of Gozo. The programme and further details of the journey will be published at a later stage."
The long-awaited announcement was made on the Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck. The feast celebrates the arrival of the Catholic faith to Malta.
Prime Minister Robert Abela welcomed the news. "It will be a beautiful occasion for all the Maltese and Gozitan people," he said.
Opposition Leader Bernard Grech did the same.
Pope Francis will be the third pope to visit Malta, after St John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI.
The dates of the papal visit had been unofficially confirmed earlier this year, resulting in speculation of a possible March election. This is the third date to be set for Pope Francis' visit.
He had been scheduled to visit in May 2020, but that had to be postponed because of the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The second date mentioned was the first week of December 2021, but then again the visit was postponed as the Vatican made it clear that it would not be drawn into having the pope come over before the election.
As such, speculation is rife that Abela will soon call an election, especially after the Prime Minister announced that he will contest on the fifth district last week.