Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate

What Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate does

The Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate (HPDP) is a public-sector directorate within Malta's Ministry for Health and Active Ageing, headquartered at St. Luke's Square, Gwardamanġa. It is the statutory national authority responsible for protecting and promoting the health and wellbeing of residents of the Maltese Islands through two operational units: the Health Promotion & Chronic Diseases Unit (HPCDU), which addresses non-communicable disease prevention and healthy lifestyle promotion, and the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit (IDCU), which handles infectious disease surveillance, outbreak management, and health screening. HPDP operates with 22 employees and serves the entire resident population of Malta and Gozo free of charge, funded entirely through the Ministry for Health and Active Ageing government budget.

HPDP's core services span population-level campaigns and individual programs. The HPCDU runs the Healthy Weight for Life (Piż Tajjeb Tul Ħajtek) weight management program, the Self Management (Ħu Kontroll) six-week chronic disease program, quit smoking services delivered via the 8007 3333 Tobacco Quitline and at Floriana, Paola, Mosta, and Gozo Health Centres, and resilience training. The IDCU operates the disease notification system for healthcare professionals, infectious disease surveillance, and health screening for work permit applicants, family reunification cases, and foreign students. Campaigns include Move to Improve (physical activity, March 2025), Beat the Heat, Drowning Prevention, Ultra-Processed Foods awareness, and an extensive bilingual (English/Maltese) health publications library.

The directorate's go-to-market relies on direct service delivery through public health centres, online program enrollment, and enterprise-facing workplace health guidelines distributed to employers. Outreach runs through the hpdp.gov.mt website, social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), YouTube, newsletters, and community partnerships with local councils, Mater Dei Hospital's Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes, and the Primary Health Care Department for the shared-care diabetes program. HPDP aligns its frameworks with international partners including the ECDC, WHO, and CDC, and participates in EU joint actions such as JACARDI, EUPAP, and Health4EUkids. The website is WCAG 2.0 Level AA compliant, GDPR-compliant under Article 27(a)(i) of the Public Health Act, and SSL-encrypted.

Name

Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate

Legal name

Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate

Website

https://hpdp.gov.mt

Company type

Public

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate (HPDP) is Malta's government directorate within the Ministry for Health and Active Ageing, delivering free health promotion and disease prevention services — including chronic disease management, infectious disease surveillance, and health screening — to all residents of the Maltese Islands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Health Services

NAICS

Administration of Public Health Programs (92312), Administration of Public Health Programs (923120)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Chronic Disease Prevention & Health Promotion Departments (HLAJAAAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Non-Communicable Disease Prevention & Chronic Disease Programs (BPAIAJAI), Communicable Disease Control Programs (TB, HIV/STIs, Hepatitis) (BPAIAJAH), Maternal, Child & Adolescent Health Administration (BPAIAJAJ)

Keywords

• Public health services
• Disease prevention programs
• Health promotion campaigns
• Infectious disease surveillance
• Chronic disease management

Headquarters

HQ city

Gwardamanġa

HQ country

Malta

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public Health Services: Government-funded public health services provided free of charge to residents of Malta. Services are funded through the Ministry for Health and Active Ageing budget.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate (HPDP) is a government directorate within Malta's Ministry for Health that delivers free public health services to residents of the Maltese Islands. It operates two main units — the Health Promotion & Chronic Diseases Unit (HPCDU) and the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit (IDCU) — providing chronic disease prevention programmes, infectious disease surveillance and control, health screening, and population-level health education campaigns in English and Maltese.

Product overview

The Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate (HPDP) operates as a unified government health agency consisting of two core operational units: the Health Promotion & Chronic Diseases Unit (HPCDU) and the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit (IDCU). The HPCDU focuses on preventing chronic noncommunicable diseases through population campaigns and personal services including the Healthy Weight for Life weight management programme, Ħu Kontroll self-management programme for chronic conditions, quit smoking services, and resilience programmes. The IDCU handles infectious disease surveillance, outbreak management, and health screening for work permits. The directorate also provides extensive health publications, runs campaigns such as Move to Improve (physical activity), Beat the Heat, and Ultra-Processed Foods awareness, and offers disease notification services and COVID-19 information.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Health Promotion & Chronic Diseases Unit (HPCDU) The unit within the Ministry for Health dedicated to preventing disease and promoting health by focusing on chronic noncommunicable diseases, healthy behaviours, stages of life, and mental health and well-being. Offers population-level campaigns and personal services to Maltese residents.
• Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit (IDCU) The national centre responsible for surveillance, prevention, and control of infectious diseases in the Maltese islands. Handles disease notification, outbreak management, health screening for work permits, and preparedness response plans.
• Healthy Weight for Life (Piż Tajjeb Tul Ħajtek) Weight management programme delivering weekly 1.15-hour nutrition sessions and 45-minute physical activity sessions over 8 weeks, offered online or in-person for adults with BMI over 25.
• Self Management Programme (Ħu Kontroll) Six-week interactive programme providing skills and tools to help manage the impact of chronic health conditions, including relaxation skills, pacing, and action planning. Offered online (7 weeks) or in-person.
• Quit Smoking Services Free smoking cessation support available online, over the phone, or in-person at Floriana, Paola, Mosta and Gozo Health Centres, via the Tobacco Quitline 8007 3333.
• Resilience Programme Programme building skills to manage life stressors and challenges through stress recognition, mindfulness, and calmness exercises.
• Health Screening Services Health screening services for work permit applications (first time and renewals), family reunification, and foreign students studying in Malta.
• Move to Improve Campaign encouraging physical activity with material including exercise videos, a Physical Activity Map with walking trails, hiking routes and outdoor gyms in Malta and Gozo.
• Beat the Heat Heat wave awareness and prevention programme providing information on heat-related health risks including heat rash, sunburn, heat cramps, dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke.
• Drowning Prevention Water safety and drowning prevention programme focusing on child safety around water, including supervision guidance, CPR instructions, and pool safety measures.
• Ultra-Processed Foods Awareness Campaign Educational campaign explaining ultra-processed foods, NOVA classification system, health impacts, and practical food swaps for healthier eating.
• COVID-19 Vaccination Programme COVID-19 vaccination services providing protection against severe disease, with guidance to combine COVID vaccine with influenza vaccination.
• PCV-20 Vaccine Programme Vaccination programme covering PCV-20 vaccine eligibility for vulnerable groups.
• Health Publications Library Extensive collection of health publications covering nutrition, physical activity, mental health, cancer prevention, diabetes management, smoking cessation, alcohol awareness, and more, available in English and Maltese.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational collaboration for infectious disease surveillance, prevention, and control. ECDC assesses risk levels for EU/EEA populations and provides guidance that HPDP implements in Malta.
• World Health Organization (WHO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplements WHO guidelines including the European Code Against Cancer and international health recommendations. Aligns Malta's health promotion strategies with global standards.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on infectious disease guidance and health information as part of international public health network.
• Ministry for Health (Malta)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent government ministry providing policy direction and funding for HPDP's health promotion and disease prevention activities.
• Local CouncilscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with local councils across Malta to deliver community-based health promotion programs, including the Move to Improve campaign and physical activity initiatives.
• Sexual Health (Malta)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExternal organization linked for sexual health services and information.
• Tobacco Free MaltaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on tobacco cessation support and smoking prevention campaigns.
• Organ Donation MaltaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRelated health initiative under the Ministry for Health umbrella.
• Mater Dei HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with the Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes for shared care diabetes program and weight management services.
• Primary Health Care DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for shared care diabetes program and multidisciplinary team approach at health centres across Malta.
• Employers across MaltaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorkplace health guidelines provided to employers to promote employee health and wellbeing in the workplace.
• Joint Action ChrodisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU project focused on chronic diseases prevention and health promotion.
• EUPAPminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU project on physical activity promotion.
• Health4EUkidsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU project focused on children's health and nutrition.
• JACARDIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU joint action on cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
• DELIVERminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU health project.
• EU Best ReMapminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU project on health promotion.
• Care4DiabetesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU lifestyle project aiming to improve health of people with Type 2 diabetes using nutrition, exercise, relaxation, and sleep pillars under multidisciplinary team supervision.
• MIDISSminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU project under IDCU's international collaboration activities.
• NGOs and StakeholderscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with non-governmental organizations and cancer care stakeholders to improve cancer prevention, awareness, aftercare, and survivorship support.
• Healthcare ProfessionalscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorks with doctors, hospitals, laboratories, and health professionals for infectious disease data collection and public health response.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Public Health Agency of Sweden (Folkhälsomyndigheten): Swedish national public health agency with a broad mandate across health promotion, disease prevention and infectious disease control. Operates a comparable mandate to HPDP in terms of scope but serves a much larger population in a different (non-island) geography.
• Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI): Norway's leading public health institute combining infectious disease control, mental and physical health research, and health-promotion advice. Comparable as a small-population Nordic national public health institute with both research and operational functions.

Direct peers

• Public Health Wales: Statutory national public health agency for Wales operating under NHS Wales with a comparable remit spanning health promotion, chronic disease prevention and infectious disease surveillance. Comparable in scale (small national jurisdiction) and integrated chronic/infectious disease mandate, and shares the challenge of serving a relatively small population with limited headcount.
• Sciensano: Belgian scientific public health institute responsible for animal and human health surveillance, with activities spanning infectious disease monitoring, chronic disease epidemiology, and health promotion research. Comparable as a small national-level public health agency combining surveillance with health promotion functions.
• Public Health Scotland: Scotland's national public health body, formed from the merger of Health Protection Scotland and Information Services Division, with an integrated mandate covering health improvement, health protection and population health data. Directly comparable to HPDP in combining chronic disease prevention with infectious disease surveillance in a small-to-medium national jurisdiction.
• Directorate of Health (Iceland): Iceland's national public health and infectious disease authority, operating under the Ministry of Health with responsibilities spanning disease prevention, health promotion and infectious disease control. Highly comparable to HPDP given the similarly small island-nation population and integrated national remit.

Broad incumbents

• Santé Publique France: France's national public health agency covering surveillance, prevention and health promotion across a broad disease portfolio. Comparable in integrated chronic/infectious disease mandate but operating at much greater scale as the public health authority for a large Western European population.
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC): EU-level agency coordinating infectious disease surveillance, risk assessment and guidance across EU/EEA member states. Already an HPDP partner; comparable as a higher-tier public health authority that sets the protocols and risk assessments HPDP implements at national level.
• UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA): UK government agency responsible for health protection and infectious disease preparedness, formed from Public Health England. Operates a superset of HPDP's IDCU functions across a much larger population and budget; comparable as the dominant health protection authority in a neighbouring jurisdiction.
• Robert Koch Institute (RKI): Germany's federal public health institute, central to infectious disease surveillance, epidemiology and health reporting. Comparable as a national public health authority with a similar integrated mandate but operating at much larger scale and budget within a federal system.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HPDPmalta
• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PL6f7ATd8uup745mhoic4oxmmPbSDfovI3
• Facebookfacebook.com/HPDPMalta
• Instagraminstagram.com/hpdpmalta
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/health-promotion-and-disease-prevention-directorate

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Directorate