Census paints picture of Cyprus’ ageing population

Official figures compiled during the 2021 census show that Cyprus’ population is ageing.

Exactly 17.2 per cent of people living in the Republic of Cyprus, a little over one in six, is now aged 65 years old or over, while 15.4 per cent of people living here are aged under 15 years old.

The 2021 census is the first in Cyprus’ history wherein there are more over 65s living in the country than children, with the 2011 census having recorded 16.1 per cent of the population as aged under 15, and 13.3 per cent aged 65 or over.

At the same time, the Republic of Cyprus’ total population increased by almost 10 per cent, with 923,381 people now living here, up from 840,407. This puts the country’s annual population growth rate at just under one per cent, which, while double the European Union average, is the lowest rate recorded in Cyprus since the 1982 census.

In that overall population, there are 474,673 women and 449,708 men. Two thirds of people in Cyprus live in urban areas, while the remainder live in rural areas.

Broken down by district, the Nicosia district has the largest population, with 350,035 people, or 37.9 per cent of Cyprus’ population living there. The Limassol district has the second-highest population of 262,157, or 28.4 per cent of the country’s population.

In third place is the Larnaca district, with 155,765 inhabitants, or 16.9 per cent of Cyprus’ population, while the Paphos district has 101,106 inhabitants, 10.9 per cent of the country’s population, and the Famagusta district has 54,318 – 5.9 per cent of Cyprus’ population.

In terms of nationality, 77.9 per cent of people living in the Republic of Cyprus are citizens of the country, while a further 10.1 per cent are citizens of other EU member states.

By individual country, 4.7 per cent of people living in the Republic of Cyprus are Greek nationals, 2.2 per cent are Romanian nationals, two per cent are British nationals, 1.8 per cent are Bulgarian nationals, 1.4 per cent are Syrian nationals, and 1.4 per cent are Russian nationals.

The Paphos district has the largest proportion of non-Cypriot inhabitants, with 40 per cent of the district’s residents not being Cypriot citizens. The Famagusta district is in a distant second place, with 23.6 per cent of residents not being Cypriot citizens.

The Nicosia district by contrast has the lowest proportion of non-Cypriot inhabitants, with only 17.3 per cent of residents not being citizens of the Republic of Cyprus.

In terms of educational attainment, people living in Cyprus are now significantly more educated than they were at the time of the 2011 census.

A total of 27.6 per cent of the population – more than a quarter – have now been to university, up from just 20.2 per cent in 2011. Exactly 19.8 per cent of people living in Cyprus attained their highest educational qualification at bachelor’s degree level, 7.1 per cent have a master’s degree, and 0.7 per cent have a PhD.

In addition, for the first time, more women than men in Cyprus have been to university, with 28.1 per cent of women and 27.1 per cent of men having gone. In 2011, a slightly higher proportion of men – 20.3 per cent – than women – 20.2 per cent – had gone to university.

Of those who have not been to university, 36.6 per cent of people in Cyprus completed their education with a high school diploma, 9.7 per cent of people completed their education with a middle school diploma, 11.6 per cent of people completed their education with a primary school diploma, and two per cent of people did not finish primary school.