Climate, psychological distress and inequality: a stark picture of an ‘at a standstill’ Italia
Waiting lists, staffing levels, inequalities, child poverty and mental health are among the key concerns highlighted in the 2030 Agenda Report in the social and health sector
Key points
In 2025, despite improvements being recorded, including the decrease in premature mortality from chronic diseases chronic diseases, serious challenges will remain: healthcare expenditure has fallen as a proportion of GDP (6.2 per cent) and waiting lists remain long (with a 50 per cent discrepancy between prescriptions and CUP bookings), with around six million people foregoing treatment. The areas of staffing levels and local healthcare provision. Furthermore, there are reports of “increasing psychological distress” affecting around 49 per cent of the population and 16 per cent of adolescents. Against this backdrop, the reform of the National Health Service (Ddelega bill) and the implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan for Healthcare highlight “delays on construction sites, staff shortages and difficulties with regional implementation”. This is the summary report on the pursuit of Goal 3 – Good Health and Well-being – drawn up by ASVIS, the Alliance for Sustainable Development, in its eleventh Report on the Millennium Development Goals entitled “Agenda for the Next Parliamentary Term”, presented to the Chamber of Deputies.
The Report
A barometer showing the healthcare sector as ‘stable’, against the backdrop of an Italia that is ‘a long way from implementing the 2030 Agenda’, as ASVIS experts explain: in 2025, the index summarising performance against the 17 Sustainable Development Goals has essentially stagnated, and no fewer than six Goals have seen a deterioration compared with the previous year.
“The situation in Italia confirms – and in some respects exacerbates – that outlined in last year’s Report,” the Report states. Between 2010 and 2025, “five composite indices relating to the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) have deteriorated: poverty, water, inequalities, life on land, peace and institutions. For another five – hunger, health, business and innovation, sustainable cities, and partnerships – progress is virtually non-existent”.
Delays or deadlocks that are having an impact on people’s lives: over 5.4 million people living in absolute poverty, 94.5 per cent of local authorities at risk of hydrogeological instability, and almost one in five young people experiencing psychological distress. Furthermore, 58 per cent of the 38 quantitative targets set for 2030 do not appear achievable, a figure unchanged from last year, despite the positive effects of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). For the first time, the results of an analysis of 45 qualitative targets are also presented, revealing that in over half of the cases – particularly in the environmental and social spheres – the regulations and policies exist, but their implementation is decidedly inadequate. As the Report further states, “in areas such as health, education, employment, regional policies and the protection of ecosystems, Italia already has strategies, regulations and programmes in place, but is failing to translate them into results, primarily due to a lack of resources and administrative capacity, the inconsistent application of provisions and the weakness of operational tools. In the areas of combating poverty and protecting rights, however, the regulatory and policy framework needs to be strengthened”.
The figures on inequality
The living conditions of people – and, above all, of the younger generations – provide a clear picture of the inequalities, which are also regularly recorded by Istat. There are 1.1 million children living in households in absolute poverty; around 16 per cent of teenage boys and girls and almost one in five young people aged 18–34 suffer from psychological distress, and over 600,000 children are receiving care from mental health services.
