Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca

Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, (born 7 December 1958) is a Maltese politician who served as President of Malta from 2014 to 2019. She has been president of Eurochild since 2019. Previously, as a member of the Labour Party, Coleiro Preca was a Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Representatives of Malta from 1998 to 2014. She served as the Minister for the Family and Social Solidarity from 2013 to 2014 under Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Early life and career Born in Qormi, Coleiro Preca studied at the University of Malta where she graduated with a BA in Legal and Humanistic Studies (International Studies) and a notary public diploma. Within the Labour Party, Coleiro Preca served within its executive. She was a member of the National Executive, the Assistant General Secretary, and as the General-Secretary. She was the only woman to have served in such a senior post of a Maltese political party. In addition to these posts, Coleiro Preca was also a member of the National Bureau of Socialist Youths (now the Labour Youth Forum), President of the Women's Section of the Party (1996-2001), founding member of the Ġużè Ellul Mercer Foundation and publisher of the Party's weekly newspaper Il-Ħelsien (now defunct).