The Index aims to help measure progress towards a more sustainable economy and was launched in 2022, with the second edition released today. Portugal rose to 15th position, when in the first edition it was in 18th, a rise sustained by the Economy, Nature and Buildings categories.

Denmark, Austria and Sweden occupy the first places and in the last are Cyprus, Bulgaria and Greece.

Under the responsibility of the consultancy “Oliver Wyman”, the Index evaluates the evolution of the 29 countries in seven categories: Economy, Nature, Manufacturing Industry, Energy, Transport, Buildings and Waste.

In the Economy category, Portugal rose in relation to the previous assessment, following a significant reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, to sixth place in this area.

In the Nature category, the country also saw a significant rise, 11 positions, to 14th, especially due to the increase in organic farming (the fourth best in Europe), although in relation to water exploitation, it has one of the worst performances, being in position 25.

The Manufacturing Industry in Portugal fell in the ranking, going from position 18 to 21, and Energy also fell four places and is now in position nine.

In the area of ​​Transport, Portugal remains at the bottom of the table (19th place), being below the average in low-emission light vehicles and at the bottom of the table (26th place) in relation to the use of public transport.

The Buildings category, which does not take into account energy poverty, places Portugal in the lead, due to the use of renewable energy to heat homes and the capacity to use bioenergy.

Unlike what happens in the Waste category, with 28th place, the penultimate in the table. The significant volume of waste sent to landfills is one of the reasons for such a low classification.

Joana Freixa, from “Oliver Wyman” Portugal, argued in the presentation of the ranking that Portugal needs better roads and increased investment in public transport, in large cities but also throughout the country, noting that compared to Spain, for example, the country is behind in the railway sector.

Regarding waste, she mentioned the need to increasingly encourage separation.

She also suggests that Portugal also needs to invest more in protected areas, in which it is also very poorly ranked (28th position). Water management and protected areas, in the Nature component, are the “big challenges”, he noted.

“Oliver Wyman” is an American management consulting firm.