VALLETTA, March 7 (xinhua) -- Life expectancy for Malta's females at birth stood at 84.4 years while for males it was 80.6 years in 2016, said to a report issued by the National Statistics Office on Wednesday.

At the end of 2016, the female population in Malta and Gozo stood at 228,634, making up 49.7 percent of the country's total.

According to the NSO, women were still at higher risk of poverty or social exclusion. In 2016 there were an estimated 42,587 women at risk of poverty or social exclusion compared to 51,298 in 2014.

In 2014 and 2015, women in the 0-17 age group were the most at risk of poverty or social exclusion. By 2016, there was a shift whereby women in the 65+ cohort were the most vulnerable and those who were separated or widowed were at a higher risk of poverty or social exclusion.

The number of female students enrolled in post-secondary and tertiary education institutions during academic year 2015-2016 stood at 12,645, which is 52.4 percent of the total enrolments. Among those enrolled in the 15-24 age bracket, 51.9 percent were females. Moreover, 59.2 percent of the students who graduated at the tertiary level were females.

In 2016, the unemployment rate for women was 5.5 percent and men was 4.4 percent.

Between 2014 and 2016, the overall gender pay gap increased by 0.4 percentage point, showing that by 2016, men were paid 11 percent more than women.