Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union

E2: Environmental statistics and accounts; sustainable development

e-mail contact : ESTAT-SDG-MONITORING@ec.europa.eu

The indicator is part of the EU Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) indicator set. It is used to monitor progress towards SDG 17 on revitalising the global partnership for sustainable development; which is embedded in the European Commission’s Priorities under 'A stronger Europe in the world'.

SDG 17 calls for a global partnership for sustainable development. It highlights the importance of macroeconomic stability and of mobilising financial resources for developing countries. It also stresses the importance of trade and equitable rules for governing it. The goal also emphasises the importance of access to science and technology, in particular internet-based information and communications technology. 

To help others to advance their economies, it is pivotal to keep the EU’s own economies on a sustainable development path. Macroeconomic management that aims to ensure financial stability in the EU is therefore one pillar of the EU’s contribution to implementing the SDGs. Government debt should consequently be limited to a manageable level and not exceed 60 % of GDP, as laid down in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. This forms the basis of the Stability and Growth Pact and the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP), which ensures fiscal sustainability. The Treaty is complemented by Regulation 1176/2011 on the prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances as well as Regulation 1174/2011 on enforcement action to correct excessive macroeconomic imbalances in the euro area. Both regulations aim to detect fiscal imbalances in the EU and allow, inter alia, for sanctions enforcement. The Economic Reform Programmes, which were introduced in 2015, form an equivalent system for EU candidates and potential candidates.

The indicator is defined in the 2012 consolidated version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and furter elaborated in Council Regulation (EC) No 479/2009, as amended and Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (ESA 2010) and subsequent legal amendments, supplemented by further interpretation and guidance from Eurostat, in particular the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt as the ratio of total government gross debt at nominal value outstanding at the end of the year to GDP at current market prices.

The government debt is defined as the total consolidated gross debt at nominal value at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities (as defined in ESA 2010): currency and deposits (AF.2), debt securities (AF.3) and loans (AF.4). The general government sector comprises the subsectors of central government, state government, local government and social security funds.

% of GDP and million EUR (current prices), in the source data set  gov_10dd_edpt1, data is available in million of national currency.

Calendar year. The data refers to the stock at the end of the calendar year.

The indicator is produced according to the high-level quality standards of European Statistics. Details on accuracy can be found in the metadata of the source dataset (see link to related metadata).

ESS

Data source: European Statistical System (ESS).

Data provider: Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat), based on data reported by the countries.

Every year

The indicator is updated biannually. Complete and updated ESS data release information can be accessed via Eurostat release calendar.

T+1 year

New data points are disseminated within one year after the reference year.

All EU MS

Data are presented for all EU Member States.

All EU MS

Data are comparable between all EU Member States.

> 10 years

Presented time series (including EU aggregates) starts in 2000.

> 4 data points

Length of comparable time series without methodological break is longer than 4 data points.

Analysis of the indicator is presented in Eurostat's annual monitoring report on Sustainable development in the EU (progress towards SDGs in the EU context).

See table sdg_17_40.

Eurostat dedicated section on SDGs: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/sdi/overview

Copyrights: Eurostat Copyright/Licence Policy is applicable.