Cyprus has ranked 56th out of 167 countries—and last among EU member states—in the 2025 Sustainable Development Report (SDR), with a score of 73.8. While this marks a slight improvement from 72.9 in 2024, the country continues to lag behind the European average.
The Cyprus branch of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) expressed concern over the findings, which reveal long-standing structural weaknesses in key UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Problematic areas include excessive nitrogen use in agriculture (SDG 2), low female parliamentary representation (SDG 5), high water imports (SDG 6), low renewable energy use (SDG 7), fatal labour accidents in imports (SDG 8), limited R&D investment (SDG 9), high inequality (SDG 10), poor e-waste recycling and plastic exports (SDG 12), CO₂ emissions (SDG 13), overfishing (SDGs 14 & 15), arms exports, press freedom concerns (SDG 16), and weak development aid and tax transparency (SDG 17).
Cyprus’ specific challenges, such as its divided status and climate conditions, also impact wildlife protection and water availability.
Despite this, progress has been made in poverty reduction (SDG 1), quality education (SDG 4), and reducing inequality (SDG 10).
The SDSN emphasised that targeted national policies, stronger institutional coordination, and civic engagement are vital to improvement—especially in climate action, sustainable consumption, and marine protection.
Source: CNA
Feature photo image: Eurac Research
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