Nicosia, Cyprus. International governance indicators for Cyprus in 2025 show comparatively strong scores on legal framework measures alongside weaker results on corruption perceptions, pointing to a gap between formal institutional capacity and perceived accountability.
Indices used to assess governance
The analysis draws on two international indicators: the World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law Index, which measures the strength and effectiveness of rule-of-law frameworks and legal processes, and Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), which measures perceived public-sector corruption.
Viewed together, the indices present what the source text describes as a system that appears competent in formal structures while facing perceptions of corruption and elite protection.
WJP Rule of Law Index: overall position and EU standing
In the WJP 2025 Rule of Law Index, Cyprus ranks 30th globally with a score of 0.67. Within the European Union, Cyprus ranks 18th among 27 member states, placing it below the EU average score of 0.73 and in a grouping that includes Slovenia, Portugal, Malta, Poland, and Italy.
Areas of high WJP performance
Cyprus records a score of 0.85 for absence of crime and 0.78 for the right to life and safety. In measures related to corruption in the justice system, it scores 0.84 for absence of judicial corruption, 0.81 for criminal justice corruption, and 0.79 for civil justice corruption.
Cyprus ranks 14th globally for freedom of belief and religion with a score of 0.82.
WJP weaknesses: delays, legislature, and access to information
The WJP data also highlight weaknesses, including a score of 0.29 for “no unreasonable delay” in civil justice, with the source text stating that routine civil cases can take 10 to 15 years. The legislature scores 0.43 on the corruption scale.
Cyprus’s sanctions score is 0.52, and its right-to-information score is 0.56, indicating barriers to public access to government data.
CPI: global ranking, EU comparison, and long-term change
Transparency International’s CPI ranks Cyprus 49th globally with a score of 55, below the EU average of 64. The source text states that Cyprus has lost 11 CPI points since 2012.
Attorney General’s office and institutional oversight concerns
The source text identifies the Attorney General’s office as central to oversight concerns, citing the Constitution’s assignment of the Attorney General’s dual role as government legal counsel and sole public prosecutor, and describing this arrangement as limiting accountability and oversight.
How should Cyprus address delays in civil justice while strengthening accountability and public access to government information?
