Nicosia: About 26 thousand children in Cyprus faced the risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024, which corresponds to 14.8% of children in the country, according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical service of the EU. Compared to 2023, the number of children affected dropped from 29 thousand to 26 thousand, bringing Cyprus at the second lowest place among the member states.
According to Cyprus News Agency, across the EU, 19.5 million children in the EU were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024. This figure represented 24.2% of children under the age of 18, down by 0.6 percentage points (pp) from 2023 (24.8%).
In Cyprus, the share dropped by 1.9 pp, from 16.7% in 2023 to 14.8% in 2024. In absolute number this corresponds to three thousand less children at risk, from 29 thousand to 26 thousand.
At the country level, Cyprus had the second lowest share of children at risk in 2024 (14.8%), after Slovenia (11.8%) and before Czechia (15.4%).
The highest values were reported in Bulgaria (35.1%), Spain (34.6%) and Romania (33.8%).
Compared with 2023, Romania registered the largest decrease in the share of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024, -5.2 pp, followed by Ireland (-3.7 pp) and Hungary (-3.3 pp).
On the other hand, Finland (+3.5 pp), Croatia (+2.0 pp), Bulgaria and Belgium (both +1.2 pp) observed the largest increases.