MaltaMedia.com

The National Statistics Office said that a survey carried among 21 parishes in Malta and Gozo revealed that 10,458 persons were involved in Good Friday processions in 2011, an increase of 1.9 per cent compared to the previous year.

Participants in these processions amounted to 90 per cent of the total, with the remaining 10 per cent either assisting or working to organise the processions. The majority of these were lay persons.

The number of persons who assisted in the organisation of these events stood at 1,022, at par with the previous year. The vast majority worked on a voluntary basis. Nearly 80 per cent of the total organising group were aged between 18 and 64.

Persons who actively participated in the processions numbered 9,436, an increase of 2 per cent when compared to 2010. The largest proportion were males (84 per cent), while 68 per cent were in the 18-64 age bracket.

On average, there were 449 participants in each procession.

The Northern District had the highest share of participants (659), while the Western and Northern Harbour
Districts were next, with 579 and 567 participants respectively.

The total expenditure in 2011 amounted to €113,964, an average of €5,427 per procession. There was an increase of 26 per cent in the total expenditure when compared to 2010 levels, mainly due to one-off payments made by some parishes to contractors on account of innovations to the events.

Nearly 20 per cent of expenditure was incurred in external activities, another 17 per cent was expended on costumes, and 14 per cent was paid out to workers and sub-contractors.

In the year under review, the total income registered by parishes in respect of Good Friday processions reached €96,948 – an increase of 22 per cent over the previous year. Donations from participants constituted the main source of income, at nearly 40 per cent of total income.