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  11. The Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda address various areas of social, economic, and environmental development, which must be considered in an integrated manner. The Goals — broken down into more specific sub-objectives, for a total of 169 targets to be achieved by 2030 — include essential components such as references to people’s well-being, the fair distribution of development benefits, the fight against poverty and climate change, environmental degradation, and inequality.

  • In 2023 the incidence of absolute poverty in Italy was 9.7% (5.7 million residents). A decrease in the South (from 13.3% in 2022 to 12% in 2023) and an increase in the North-west (from 8.2% to 9.1%) were recorded.
  • In 2024, 18.9% of the Italian population (about 11 million people) was at risk of poverty. Young people (23.2%) were more vulnerable, while the elderly (18.6%) showed a risk lower than the average, but increasing in recent years.
  • In 2024, about 13.5 million people in Italy (23.1% of the population) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Strong regional disparities were observed: Campania, Calabria and Sicilia exceed 40%, while the Northern regions were below 15%.
  • In 2024, 10.2% of the employed population in Italy (almost 2.5 million) was at risk of poverty, a figure higher than the EU27 average (8.2%). The risk was higher for foreign citizens (22.6%) compared to Italian citizens (8.8%).
  • In 2024, 5.1% of the Italian population was living in conditions of housing cost overburden. Despite the generalized ten-year decrease, significant territorial differences persist, with the South (6.4%) showing values twice as high as the North-east (3.2%).

  • In 2024, 1.3% of the Italian population experienced food insecurity (-0.2 p.p. compared to the previous year). The share was significantly higher in the South and Islands (2.7%), and among the households with disabilities (2.4%).
  • In 2023, 26.7% of children and adolescents were overweight (0.5 p.p. less than previous year). The prevalence of overweight kept increasing among the youngest (3-5 year olds), reaching 33.8%. The share of organic crops was 19.8% in 2023, among the highest in the EU.
  • In 2022, the share of non-regular employment in the agricultural sector was 20.2%, more than double the value estimated for the entire economy, and reached 26.8% in the South.
  • In 2023, ammonia emissions from the agricultural sector increased by 11% compared to the previous year. Ammonia emissions remained, however, within the limits set by the NEC Directive.

  • In 2024, life expectancy at birth in Italy is 83.4 years, up by 0.4 years compared to 2023. Men have a lower average life expectancy (81.4 years) than women (85.5 years). Healthy life expectancy at birth in 2024 is estimated at 58.1 years, rising to 59.8 for men and dropping to 56.6 for women.
  • In 2024, there were 651,000 deaths in Italy, a 3.1% decrease compared to 2023, with a mortality rate of 11.0 per 1,000 residents.
  • In 2022, the probability of dying between the ages of 30 and 69 from cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular, or respiratory diseases was 8.2%. This figure rises to 10.1% among men and drops to 6.4% among women.
  • In 2023, the age-specific fertility rate for women aged 15 to19 was 13.6 births per 1,000 young women, with the lowest value in the North-East (8.6) and the highest in the Islands (30.1).
  • In 2022, the number of hospital beds in Italy was 30.3 per 10,000 inhabitants, with the highest concentration in the North-West (32.5) and the lowest in the South (27.1).
  • In 2023, the road accidents mortality rate was 4.9 deaths per 100,000 residents, equivalent to approximately 8 deaths per day on Italian roads. The male road mortality rate was four times higher than that of females (8.1 vs 1.9).

  • In Italy, in the school year 2023/24, the share of pupils who didn’t achieve the basic competence level in Italian is 32.8% in grade 2, it is a further increase compared to previous years; conversely, the share in grade 5 (24.6%) recorded a slight decrease.
  • In both grades 2 and 5, pupils who did not reach the basic level in Mathematics recorded a significant decline (32.6% and 31.8%), although the distance from the pre-pandemic values is still very large. The results in grade 13 show a significant improvement in the share of students who didn’t achieve basic level in Italian and Mathematics in comparison to the previous year (43.5%, -5.8 points; 47.5%, -2.5 points; respectively); however, the distance from the pre-pandemic values remains large.
  • In 2024, the share of early leavers from education and training aged 18-24 was 8%, in improvement from the previous year (10.5%).
  • In 2024, the share of people aged 25-34 with a tertiary qualification was 6%, (30.6% in 2023), still far from the target of 45% for 2030.
  • Goal 4 – Istruzione di qualità   (.pdf, in Italian)

  • In 2023, the number of homicides of women was 94. The percentage of women murdered by partners, ex-partners or other relatives was very high, equal to 80.3%.
  • The offer of specialized services for the support and protection of women victims of violence increased up to a rate of 2.74 services per 100,000 women aged 14 and over.
  • In the past decade, women’s political representation has increased in regional governments, as well as in the boards of publicly listed companies and other decision-making bodies.
  • In 2024, the ratio of employment rate for women with preschool-aged children to those without children returned to pre-pandemic levels (75.4%).

 

 

  • In 2022, Italy ranked first among EU27 countries for the volume of freshwater withdrawal for public water supply (9.13 billion cubic meters, excluding marine waters; -3.6% compared to 2015), and third for per capita withdrawal (155 cubic meters per year).
  • In 2022, public water supply networks delivered 214 litres per inhabitant per day (-36 litres compared to 1999). Critical issues persist: urban water supply network efficiency stood at 57.6% in 2022.
  • In 2023, 14 Province/Metropolitan city capital municipalities implemented measures of rationing of domestic water supply.
  • In 2022, public sewer system coverage was at 88.8%: about 6.6 million residents were not connected to the network.
  • In 2022, there were 18,118 urban wastewater treatment plants in operation, of which 7,946 with at least secondary treatment. Between 2017 and 2023, Italy showed a progress in the degree of integrated water resources management implementation, from medium-high level (55) to high level (78).
  • In 2024, almost one out of three households did not trust drinking tap water and nearly one out of ten reported irregularities in water supply (stable compared to 2023).

  • In 2023, the overall share of energy from renewable sources (RES) in Gross Final Energy Consumption (GFC) increased marginally, settling at 19.6% (+0.5 percentage points compared to 2022 and +2.9 percentage points over the last decade). This was due mainly by the contraction in GFC than by an actual increase in RES.
  • Positive trends were observed in 2023 regarding reduced energy consumption, confirming Italy’s virtuous position within the European context.
  • The residential sector recorded a significant contraction in final consumption (468 kilograms of oil equivalent per capita; -8% compared to 2022), reaching its lowest level in the last decade.
  • Energy intensity fell from 83.5 to 79.6 tons of oil equivalent per million euros (-4.7%), the lowest intensity in 10 years.
  • However, in 2024, the market share of electric or plug-in hybrid cars declined for the third year in a row, reaching 7.5%. The regulatory targets (25% by 2030) appear very far.

  • In Italy, in 2024, the gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 0.7% in volume, in line with the previous year, marking a growth rate below the EU27 average (+1%).
  • However, GDP per employed person and value added per hour worked—measures of overall productivity and the labor’s ability to generate wealth—recorded a contraction for the second consecutive year (respectively -1.2% and -1.8% in 2023, and -0.9% and -1.5% in 2024).
  • In 2024, the positive trend of the Italian labor market that began in 2021 continues. The employment rate for people aged 20–64 increased by 0.8 percentage points compared to 2023, reaching 67.1% (+7.6 p.p. over the past decade); the unemployment rate fell by 1.2 percentage points to 6.5% (down by 6.4 p.p. compared to ten years ago).
  • The difficult situation of young people in the labor market is reflected in an employment rate of 35% for those aged 20–24—just over half the national average—and an unemployment rate of 20.3% for those aged 15–24, which is three times the national rate.
  • In addition, the share of NEETs (“Not in Education, Employment or Training”) stands at 15.2%, the second highest in the EU27 after Romania.
  • In 2022, the average gross hourly wage for employees in Italy stood at €16.02, a figure that remained largely stable compared to 2018 (+3%) and increased by 10.6% compared to 2010, one of the smallest increases in the EU27 both compared to the previous year than the decade-long comparison.

  • In 2022, research intensity continued to decline from the previous year, reaching 1.37% of GDP (lower than 1.43% in 2021). It places Italy among the lowest positions in the EU27.
  • Researchers continued to grow in 2022, reaching 28.3 researchers per 10,000 inhabitants, up from 26.8 in the previous year.
  • Between 2020 and 2022, there was an increase in the share of firms that introduced one or more innovations with positive environmental impacts, rising from 37% in 2020 to 40.1% in 2022.
  • From 2022 to 2023, CO2 emissions to gross value added showed an 8% reduction, decreasing from 143.7 tonnes per million euros to 132.2 tonnes.
  • The share of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) specialists in total employment decreased for the second consecutive year, reaching 3% (-0.1 percentage points compared to 2023 and 0.9 p.p. compared to 2022).

  • In Italy, in 2023, the richest 20% earned 5.5 times the income of the poorest 20%; Italy confirmed its position among the European Union countries with the highest income inequality.
  • Between 2013 and 2023, the income of the poorest 40% of the population grew by an average of 1.0%, slightly exceeding the 0.8% calculated for the overall population.
  • Between 2014 and 2024, the disposable income of Italian households grew by 26.6% in nominal terms, but in real terms it increased by only 4.9%, remaining more than 4% lower than twenty years prior.
  • In 2023, new residence permits issued in Italy fell by 26.4%, reaching 330,730. The main reasons for issuance remained family reunification (39%) and various forms of protection (32.1%).
  • In 2023, the number of non-EU citizens with residence permits in Italy dropped by 3%. This was partly due to the over 213 thousand acquisitions of citizenship, with two-thirds of these new citizenships granted in the North.
  • Goal 10 – Reduced Inequalities  (.pdf, in Italian)

  • In 2023, the share of capital cities recording mean annual PM5 concentrations above 20 µg/m3 fell to 10% (they were 15.6% in 2022).
  • The average number of days on which the long-term objective set for ozone was exceeded also fell: 33 days compared to 39 in 2022.
  • More generally, in 2022, the estimate of premature deaths due to long-term exposure to PM5 concentrations above the reference value established by the WHO (5 µg/m3 according to the 2021 guidelines) fell by 25% from 2011 and was equal to 83 premature deaths per 100,000 inhabitants.
  • In 2024, the share of households with difficulties in public transport connection increases (34.5%), returning to incidences like pre-pandemic values (33.5%).
  • In 2024, the share of students who habitually travel to study locations only by public transport increases to 28.5% (25.5% in 2023).
  • In 2023, the total supply of local public transport (LPT) services in the capital cities is slightly decreasing compared to the previous year (-1.5%) at 4,623 seat-km per inhabitant.
  • Goal 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities  (.pdf, in Italian)

  • In 2023, Domestic Material Consumption (DMC) performance was positive, decreasing by 7.4% by GDP and by 6.7% by population. With 0.25 tonnes of material consumed per €1,000 and 8.3 tonnes per inhabitant, Italy is among the most virtuous countries in the EU27, ranking second in per capita consumption and third in consumption related to GDP.
  • Despite a slight increase in per capita municipal waste (+0.8%), the recycling rate rose by 1.6 percentage points, close to 51%; the share of separate waste collection increased by 1.4 percentage points, reaching 66.6%. However, significant delays persist regarding regulations, and territorial disparities are widespread.
  • The increase in the circular material use rate after the recovery in 2022 slowed down (+0.2 percentage points). The share of recovered material returned to the economy out of the total materials used reached 20.8% in 2023, significantly above the EU27 average (11.8%), and ranking second in Europe.
  • In 2022, production activities in Italy generated 10 million tonnes of hazardous special waste, a decrease of 6% compared to the previous year. The production of hazardous special waste showed a clear decrease, compared to the previous year, in relation to both GDP (-12%) and population (-6%), although is higher than in 2014 (+4% and +16%).
  • Goal 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production  (.pdf, in Italian)

  • After stability in 2022, the greenhouse gas emissions from the Italian economy decrease again in 2023 (-5.3%). Electricity, gas steam and air conditioning supply (-22.2%) and manufacturing (-3.8%) industries led the emissions decline, along with heating activities by households (-9.3%). In contrast, emissions from the transport sector increased (+9.1%).
  • The trend in temperature anomalies compared to normal climatological increased in 2023, at global level (+0.86°C) and in Italy (1.14°C).
  • In many Italian regions, the risk of floods (11.5%) and landslides (2.2%), also a consequence of climate change, was high in 2020.
  • In 2022, there were 25 deaths and missing persons from floods/flooding and 14 from landslides. Injuries were 56 and 27, respectively; more than in previous years.
  • In 2023, there were 20 earthquakes with a magnitude greater than or equal to 4.0 (19 in 2022). The strongest, magnitude 5.2, off the coast of Calabria, while the strongest on land, magnitude 4.9, struck north of Florence.
  • In 2023, the area covered by fire is 2.9 per 1,000 km², slightly higher than 2022 (2.4), but far from the peaks of 2021 (5.0 per 1,000 km²) and 2017 (5.4).
  • In 2024, for 69.2% of people aged 14 and over, concern about climate change and greenhouse effect was among the top five environmental ones.

  • In 2023, the beached marine litter return to decline, 250 per 100 metres of beach (in 2022 it was 303); it is still far from the EU target (20 litter per 100 metres).
  • In 2022, 11.6% of total marine areas was protected, but still far from the EU biodiversity Strategy 2030 target of 30%.
  • In 2023, bathing waters with excellent quality were 98.0%, on the rise and in line with the EU Bathing Directive minimum standards.

  • In 2022, protected areas covered 21.7% of the national territory; the goal set by the National biodiversity strategy is to reach 30% by 2030.
  • In 2023, certified forest areas continued to increase (by 6.2%, compared to the previous year), but their extent in relation to forest areas remained far below the European average.
  • In the same year, 42.3% of natural and semi-natural areas showed a high or very high degree of fragmentation, which limits or prevents the soil from delivering essential ecosystem services, and 46.3% (about 20% of the national territory), was home to 58 threatened ecosystems, half of which endangered or critically endangered.

  • According to the 2023 Census, there are 97,959 individuals residing in the territory who are not officially registered in the municipal registry, 86.3% of whom are foreign nationals.
  • In Italy, registry office services receive a positive evaluation from citizens: in 2024, 82.4% of respondents rated them at least 6 out of 10, a figure that has remained substantially stable since 2016.
  • In 2024, the percentage of unsentenced detainees (15.4%) remained stable compared to the previous year.
  • In 2023, the prevalence of victims of violent crimes (physical assaults, robberies, and threats) was 1.3 per 100 inhabitants, marking a sharp decline from 2016 (2.4).
  • Meanwhile, intentional homicides decreased by only 0.1 per 100,000 inhabitants, dropping from 0.7 to 0.6, confirming Italy’s position as having one of the lowest rates in the EU-27 (and becoming the absolute lowest in 2022).

  • In Italy, between 2013 and 2023, the trend of Official Development Assistance was stable, with a peak in 2022 at 0.33% of gross national income, followed by a decline to 0.27% in 2023.
  • In 2024, the amount of remittances sent abroad by the foreign population in Italy continued its upward trend, reaching €8.29 billion—higher than both ten years earlier and the previous year.
  • In 2024, more than 55% of remittances were concentrated in four regions: Lombardy (21.9%), Lazio (15.3%), Emilia-Romagna (10%), and Veneto (8.4%).
  • In 2024, tax and parafiscal revenues of Public Administrations accounted for 42.6% of GDP, an increase of 1.2 percentage points compared to the previous year and a decrease of 0.5 percentage points compared to 2014.
  • The period from 2014 to 2024 saw the rise of e-commerce: from 15.3% of people ordering/purchasing goods or services online to 41.9% in 2024.

SDGs ONU website
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