Republic of Cyprus Second Voluntary National Report - Sustainable development goals

84 NARRATIVE Cyprus, via the absorption of relevant EU funds, the development of targeted measures and policies, and the implementation of various projects, is focusing on making urban and rural communities more inclusive and sustainable. Strategies like the “Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Plans” and the “Strategy for the sustainable development of rural communities and municipalities” drive key initiatives like urban mobility projects and the revitalisation of main historic centres suffering from broad degradation and socioeconomic challenges. New housing policies aim to provide more affordable housing options both in urban and in rural areas. Finally, the proposed local Government reform aims to help local communities tackle inefficiencies, become more sustainable, and provide a higher quality of life for its citizens. ANALYSIS Cyprus is the country with the lowest percentage of its population living in an overcrowded household (2.2% relative to 17.2% in the EU). However, Cyprus is below other European countries in terms of housing quality. In particular, with 31.1% of its population living in a dwelling with a leaking roof, damp walls, floors or foundation, or rot in window frames of floor, it ranks last among the EU27. About 15.4% of the population is living in households deemed to be suffering from noise, with Cyprus ranking 15 th among the EU27. Another relatively poor score, with Cyprus ranking 19 th among EU27, refers to the 12.7% of the population that has reported occurrences of crime, violence, or vandalism in their area (see Figure 29). The quality of life in Cyprus is rather negatively affected by air pollution which, to a great extend is due to the impacts of climate change. Cyprus holds the 16 th place among EU member states with 13.2 µg/m3 relative to 12.6 µg/m3 (on average) in the EU (see Figure 30). The performance of Cyprus in terms of sustainable mobility is relatively poor with public transport comprised only of buses that handle just 2,44% of the commuters. On the other hand, Cypriots enjoy greater space than the EU 15.4 31.1 12.7 17.3 12.7 11.0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Population Living in Households Considering that they Su er from Noise Population Living in a Dwelling with a Leaking Roof, Damp Walls, Floors or Foundation or Rot in Window Frames of Floor Population Reporting Occurrence of Crime, Violence or Vandalism in their Area % of population Cyprus EU Figure 29.: Quality of Life in Cities and Communities 22.2 23.2 24.3 17.0 17.2 17.2 14.7 14.7 13.2 48.0 35.7 36.4 37.4 32.4 34.9 27.2 29.2 29.9 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Particulates <2.5Μm Particulates <10Μm Figure 30.: Exposure to Air Pollution Particulates <2.5Mm average with the per capita settlement area being 939 m 2 relative to 703.4 m 2 per capita in the EU. In addition, Cyprus underperforms, holding the 16 th place in the number of people killed in road accidents per 100,000 persons (5.6 relative to 5.2 in the EU). Finally, the country continues to face considerable challenges with respect to municipal waste recycling, ranking 20 th in the EU with only 15% of the total municipal waste produced being recycled (15% in Cyprus, relative to 47.6% in the EU).