The subjective poverty rate in the European Union fell to 17.4 per cent in 2024, an improvement from the rate of 19.1 per cent recorded in 2023, according to figures released on Thursday by Eurostat.

The data showed that Cyprus reported a subjective poverty rate of 20.8 per cent for 2024.

Crucially, this figure reflects a significant improvement, continuing a strong downward trend from 24.1 per cent in 2023, 29.6 per cent in 2022, and a high of 58.8 per cent in 2015.

The latest 2024 figure means that the rate of people considered to be subjectively poor in Cyprus is now closer to the EU average, although it remains slightly higher.

Across the broader EU, the rate of the population considered subjectively poor in 2024 saw Greece reporting the highest rate at 66.8 per cent, followed by Bulgaria at 37.4 per cent, and Slovakia at 28.7 per cent.

Conversely, the lowest rates were reported in the Netherlands and Germany, both at 7.3 per cent, with Luxembourg close behind at 8.5 per cent.

The subjective poverty rate for the Euro area mirrored the EU trend, falling to 17.6 per cent in 2024 from 19.3 per cent in 2023.

Focusing on different age groups across the EU in 2024, Eurostat reported that the highest subjective poverty rate was found among people under 18 years, at 20.6 per cent.

Among people aged 18 to 64 years, the rate was 17.3 per cent, while the oldest generation, those 65 years and older, had the lowest rate at 14.9 per cent.

All age groups saw a decrease in the overall share of subjective poverty from 2023 to 2024.

The biggest fall was recorded in the 18 to 64 years age group at 1.8 percentage points, while the decline for both the youngest and the oldest age groups was 1.6 percentage points.