A new legal entity called Jehovah’s Witnesses in Malta (JW-Malta) recently became a registered organization in the country. JW-Malta obtained its Certificate of Registration of a Legal Person a on December 28, 2021.

Jehovah’s Witnesses have been established in Malta since the 1970’s. However, for decades, congregations existed with little or no legal recognition. This made it very difficult for congregations to own property or to even open a bank account. In 1994, the International Bible Students Association (IBSA) became an unregistered association in Malta. Although this gave IBSA certain rights, these were very limited in scope. The recent recognition of JW-Malta now makes it much easier for the local country office and congregations in Malta to operate smoothly.

Reflecting on the recent registration, Brother Joe Magri, a member of the Malta Country Committee, said: “It has been faith-strengthening to see Jehovah’s blessing in obtaining this legal status. He blessed us with assistance from brothers in the Legal Departments in Britain and world headquarters to make this registration successful. We are so pleased to be able to promote Kingdom interests and praise Jehovah even more fully by having his name featured in the new legal entity.”

Currently, there are over 800 Witnesses in Malta, serving in 11 congregations. We rejoice that the work of “preaching the Kingdom of God,” started in Malta by the apostle Paul almost 2,000 years ago, continues to advance “without hindrance.”—Acts 28:1, 30, 31.