The population of Nicosia and three neighbouring municipalities has grown by 20% in 20 years

The first public consultation on the new Local Plan was held in Nicosia — a document that will determine the capital’s development rules for years to come. The Planning Bureau preparing the plan presented demographic and urban-planning data and identified the main challenges, while residents responded with sharp criticism.

The plan covers the municipal districts of Nicosia, Aglantzia, Engomi (Engomi) and Agios Dometios (Agios Dometios). Their combined population grew from 92,534 people in 2001 to 106,263 in 2011 and 111,433 in 2021 — an increase of almost 20% over two decades. Engomi saw the biggest increase, from 13,644 to 20,504 residents, or 50%. Nicosia grew by 18% and has 56,479 residents, Aglantzia by 14% and has 21,544 residents, while Agios Dometios grew by 6%.

Foreign nationals account for 18.9% of the urban population, while older people account for 17.7%. The housing stock grew by 15% from 2011 to 2021 — from 50,344 to 57,952 units. At the same time, the number of permanently occupied homes increased by 21%, while vacant and temporarily occupied homes fell by 7%.

The area covered by the study is approximately 67.1 million m². Residential zones account for 36% of the area, agricultural zones for 30% and conservation zones for 15.5%.

Among the key challenges, the developers identified low-density development, which makes infrastructure more expensive to maintain, the proximity of housing to incompatible activities, the climate crisis, a lack of public green spaces and underdeveloped sustainable urban mobility. They also highlighted the outflow of residents to the suburbs and the weakening of the city centre, as well as the fact that Nicosia is Cyprus’s only major city without access to the sea and the only capital divided by a ceasefire line.

Planners have promised to take into account the comments made by residents at the meeting in the further dialogue: the plan’s task is to connect data about the city with people’s real needs and bring together development, nature conservation, sustainable transport and the renewal of the urban environment.