Photo: Phillip Capper derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 07 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Vanuatu: Environment & Sustainability
How much pressure does a country put on the natural world?
Vanuatu is placed joint 18th of 186 countries on environment & sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 4 key statistics. Readings behind it: CO₂ Emissions per Capita 0.601 (2024); Organic Agricultural Area 3.98 (2024).
Share
Environment & Sustainability
joint18th
of 186 countries placed
Placed from 2 of 4 key statistics
01The evidence
The 4 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Vanuatu on environment & sustainability — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 4
CO₂ Emissions per Capita
Global Carbon Project
Why it is a key: How much carbon dioxide a country's own fuel burning puts into the air for each person living there.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
0.601
Fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person)
Lower is better
Vanuatu: 0.601. Across the 210 countries in this edition, values run from 0.054 (DR Congo) to 41.27 (Qatar); the world median is 3.21.
- World median
- 3.21
- Best in Melanesia
- 0.36 Solomon Islands
Each grey tick is one of 210 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 2 of 4
Water Stress
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Why it is a key: Whether a country withdraws more freshwater than nature replaces: the one pressure in this subject a country creates for itself rather than faces.
2023 edition · data for 2023 · CC BY 4.0
No reading
Freshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%)
Lower is better
FAO publishes no 2023 figure for Vanuatu, so the standing rests on the other keys.
Across the 177 countries in this edition, values run from 0.03 (Republic of the Congo) to 3,851 (Kuwait); the world median is 10.
- World median
- 10
- Best in Melanesia
- 0.13 Papua New Guinea
Each grey tick is one of 177 countries in the 2023 edition.
Key 3 of 4
Organic Agricultural Area
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Why it is a key: Farmland managed without synthetic fertiliser or pesticide — how far a country's farms have moved toward cleaner practice.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
3.98
Organic share of agricultural land (%)
Higher is better
Vanuatu: 3.98. Across the 156 countries in this edition, values run from 0 (Afghanistan) to 86.38 (Samoa); the world median is 0.725.
- World median
- 0.725
- Best in Melanesia
- 6.56 Solomon Islands
Each grey tick is one of 156 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 4 of 4
Ecological Footprint
Global Footprint Network
Why it is a key: How much of the planet's biological capacity a country's own consumption uses up.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0
No reading
Ecological Footprint (global hectares per person)
Lower is better
Global Footprint Network publishes no 2025 figure for Vanuatu, so the standing rests on the other keys.
Across the 126 countries in this edition, values run from 0.514 (Yemen) to 11.73 (Qatar); the world median is 2.296.
- World median
- 2.296
- Best in Melanesia
- 3.122 Fiji
Each grey tick is one of 126 countries in the 2025 edition.
02Over time
Which way Vanuatu is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
CO₂ Emissions per Capita
Fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person) · lower is better
VanuatuWorld median
Vanuatu rose from 0.452 in 2000 to 0.601 in 2024; the world median went from 2.662 to 3.21.
Every year’s figures
Year Vanuatu World median 2024 0.60126 3.210 2023 0.58818 3.145 2022 0.60487 3.162 2021 0.70676 3.087 2020 0.68656 2.903 2019 0.56469 3.273 2018 0.61653 3.036 2017 0.49992 3.049 2016 0.55212 2.894 2015 0.49569 2.846 2014 0.60541 2.919 2013 0.43194 2.779 2012 0.47110 2.770 2011 0.54176 2.748 2010 0.52288 2.812 2009 0.51954 2.799 2008 0.38756 2.979 2007 0.34773 2.593 2006 0.33938 2.865 2005 0.34769 2.885 2004 0.35623 2.802 2003 0.38329 2.918 2002 0.39285 2.785 2001 0.42196 2.726 2000 0.45239 2.662 Organic Agricultural Area
Organic share of agricultural land (%) · higher is better
VanuatuWorld median
Vanuatu fell from 5.57 in 2006 to 3.98 in 2024; the world median went from 0.305 to 0.725.
Every year’s figures
Year Vanuatu World median 2024 3.98 0.725 2023 3.98 0.780 2022 1.44 0.740 2021 3.89 0.710 2020 1.27 0.665 2019 5.18 0.550 2018 15.86 0.490 2017 9.22 0.630 2016 7.30 0.545 2015 5.88 0.540 2014 4.08 0.470 2013 2.54 0.440 2012 2.54 0.480 2011 1.36 0.460 2010 1.67 0.330 2009 5.57 0.335 2008 5.57 0.290 2007 5.57 0.370 2006 5.57 0.305 2005 — 0.345
03In context
Vanuatu beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 186 countries on environment & sustainability, never a place within the region.
Vanuatu and Melanesia
Vanuatu has no land border, so the table compares it with its sub-region. The standing is each country’s place among all 186 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | CO₂ Emissions per CapitaFossil CO₂ (tonnes per person) | Water StressFreshwater withdrawal as a share of available resources (%) | Organic Agricultural AreaOrganic share of agricultural land (%) | Ecological FootprintEcological Footprint (global hectares per person) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Solomon Islands | 7th | 0.36 | — | 6.56 | — |
 Papua New Guinea | 14th | 0.789 | 0.13 | 1.39 | — |
| Vanuatu | =18th | 0.601 | — | 3.98 | — |
 Fiji | 36th | 1.556 | 0.55 | 4.67 | 3.122 |
 New Caledonia | not placed | 18.07 | — | — | — |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Melanesia
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 186.
Placed either side on environment & sustainability
The countries immediately above and below Vanuatu in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Vanuatu is ahead of the world, and behind
31 more statistics filed under environment & sustainability, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median4
Statistics on which Vanuatu does better than the middle country measured.
PM2.5 Air Pollution ExposureAtmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis · 2023 · world median 14.454.714.45No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 4.7 · world median 14.45 · Population-weighted PM2.5 concentration (µg/m³). Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 2.5 to 68.2; lower is better.
Position 203rd of 220 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Renewable Internal Freshwater Resources per CapitaFAO · 2022 · world median 2,52831,9442,528No real change since 2012
Vanuatu: 31,944 · world median 2,528 · Renewable internal freshwater (cubic metres per person). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 445,023; higher is better.
Position 17th of 181 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Municipal Solid Waste GenerationWorld Bank Group · 2026 · world median 0.9660.3950.966No earlier reading
Vanuatu: 0.395 · world median 0.966 · Municipal solid waste generated (kg per person per day). World Bank Group, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 0.058 to 4.176; lower is better.
Position 173rd of 201 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural Emissions IntensityFAO · 2023 · world median 1.5651.441.565▲ Improved since 2013
Vanuatu: 1.44 · world median 1.565 · Greenhouse gases from farming per value of agricultural output (kg CO₂eq per international dollar). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 28.2; lower is better.
Position 105th of 190 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median7
Statistics on which Vanuatu does worse than the middle country measured.
Annual Forest Area Change RateFAO · 2025 · world median 0-0.260▼ Worsened since 2015
Vanuatu: -0.26 · world median 0 · Compound annual change in forest area over the interval ending that year (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from -3.29 to 12.3; higher is better.
World Risk IndexInstitute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), Ruhr University Bochum · 2025 · world median 4.1711.674.17No real change since 2015
Vanuatu: 11.67 · world median 4.17 · WorldRiskIndex score (0–100, where 100 is the most at risk). Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), Ruhr University Bochum, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.18 to 46.56; lower is better.
Position 44th of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
ND-GAIN Country IndexNotre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame · 2024 · world median 47.4437.747.44▼ Worsened since 2014
Vanuatu: 37.7 · world median 47.44 · ND-GAIN Index (0–100, where 100 is best placed to adapt). Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 26.42 to 71.85; higher is better.
Ranked 155th of 190 by Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame.
Climate Vulnerability (ND-GAIN)Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame · 2024 · world median 0.450.5470.45No real change since 2014
Vanuatu: 0.547 · world median 0.45 · ND-GAIN Vulnerability (0–1, where 1 is the most vulnerable). Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.263 to 0.655; lower is better.
Ranked 163rd of 190 by Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative (ND-GAIN), University of Notre Dame.
Energy Intensity of GDP (PPP)EIA · 2024 · world median 2.7385.7862.738▼ Worsened since 2014
Vanuatu: 5.786 · world median 2.738 · Energy use per dollar of GDP (thousand Btu per US$ at PPP). U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.666 to 17.45; lower is better.
Progress Toward Productive and Sustainable Agriculture (SDG 2.4.1 Proxy)FAO · 2024 · world median 3.142.143.14▲ Improved since 2015
Vanuatu: 2.14 · world median 3.14 · Current status score, from 1 (worst) to 5 (best), averaged over up to seven sub-indicators. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 1.67 to 4.57; higher is better.
Position 171st of 186 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Forest Area within Legally Established Protected AreasFAO · 2025 · world median 18.180.3318.18No real change since 2015
Vanuatu: 0.33 · world median 18.18 · Forest within legally established protected areas, as a share of the country's 2015 forest area (%). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 100; higher is better.
No better end20
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Population Living Below 5 m ElevationCenter for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University · 2015 · world median 2.95410.112.954No real change since 1990
Vanuatu: 10.11 · world median 2.954 · Population living below 5 m elevation (% of total population). Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University, 2015 edition, data for 2015.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 78.48.
Forest AreaFAO · 2023 · world median 31.0836.2831.08No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 36.28 · world median 31.08 · Forest area (% of land area). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 94.45.
Position 83rd of 210 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Fisheries and Aquaculture ProductionFAO · 2024 · world median 52,37544,39352,375Moved since 2014
Vanuatu: 44,393 · world median 52,375 · Fish, crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic animals caught or farmed, tonnes (live weight). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 70,500,841.
Fertilizer Consumption per HectareFAO · 2023 · world median 87.3677.3587.36Moved since 2013
Vanuatu: 77.35 · world median 87.36 · Fertilizer consumption (kg per hectare of arable land). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 2,926.
Position 100th of 188 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Tropical Moist Forest DeforestationJRC · 2025 · world median 0.0010.0010.001Moved since 2015
Vanuatu: 0.001 · world median 0.001 · Tropical moist forest deforested in the year (million hectares). European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 0.708.
Mangrove AreaGlobal Mangrove Watch (Aberystwyth University, JAXA, soloEO, Wetlands International, The Nature Conservancy) · 2025 · world median 8,9272,1878,927No real change since 2015
Vanuatu: 2,187 · world median 8,927 · Mangrove forest area (hectares). Global Mangrove Watch (Aberystwyth University, JAXA, soloEO, Wetlands International, The Nature Conservancy), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.524 to 3,146,544.
Livestock DensityFAO · 2023 · world median 0.5350.410.535Moved since 2013
Vanuatu: 0.41 · world median 0.535 · Livestock units per hectare of agricultural land. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.02 to 43.97.
Position 115th of 188 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Meat Supply per PersonFAO · 2023 · world median 57.8340.9957.83Moved since 2013
Vanuatu: 40.99 · world median 57.83 · Meat available as food (kg per person per year, carcass weight). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 3.49 to 156.95.
Total Natural Resources Rents (% of GDP)World Bank Group · 2021 · world median 1.7080.5681.708Moved since 2011
Vanuatu: 0.568 · world median 1.708 · Natural resources rents (% of GDP). World Bank Group, 2021 edition, data for 2021.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 61.03.
Position 124th of 180 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Tree Cover LossWorld Resources Institute — Global Forest Watch (data: University of Maryland) · 2025 · world median 3,775291.833,775Moved since 2015
Vanuatu: 291.83 · world median 3,775 · Tree cover loss (hectares, where canopy cover exceeded 30% in 2000). World Resources Institute — Global Forest Watch (data: University of Maryland), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 6,225,187.
Arable Land per PersonFAO · 2023 · world median 0.1090.0620.109No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 0.062 · world median 0.109 · Arable land (hectares per person). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 1.459.
Position 140th of 206 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Agricultural LandFAO · 2023 · world median 37.9615.3437.96No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 15.34 · world median 37.96 · Agricultural land (% of land area). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.445 to 86.48.
Position 165th of 209 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Methane EmissionsEDGAR · 2025 · world median 325.699.533325.69No real change since 2015
Vanuatu: 9.533 · world median 325.69 · Methane emissions (gigagrams of CH₄). European Commission, Joint Research Centre (EDGAR), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.048 to 51,093.
Solar Electricity Installed CapacityEIA · 2024 · world median 0.1440.0060.144No real change since 2014
Vanuatu: 0.006 · world median 0.144 · Solar generating capacity installed (gigawatts). U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 886.66.
Agricultural EmissionsFAO · 2023 · world median 8,635276.738,635No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 276.73 · world median 8,635 · Farm-gate emissions (kt CO₂eq). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 1,044,508.
Position 162nd of 193 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Temperature Change on LandFAO · 2025 · world median 1.4741.0241.474Moved since 2015
Vanuatu: 1.024 · world median 1.474 · Change in mean land-surface temperature against the country's own 1951–1980 average, °C. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.34 to 3.294.
Burned AreaGWIS · 2025 · world median 13,824013,824Moved since 2015
Vanuatu: 0 · world median 13,824 · Burned area (hectares). European Commission Joint Research Centre — Global Wildfire Information System (GWIS), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 50,562,035.
Land Under Cereal ProductionFAO · 2023 · world median 689,2781,555689,278No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: 1,555 · world median 689,278 · Land under cereal production (hectares). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 103,715,108.
Position 161st of 179 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Pesticide Use per HectareFAO · 2024 · world median 1.730.131.73No real change since 2014
Vanuatu: 0.13 · world median 1.73 · Pesticide use (kg per hectare of cropland). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 37.72.
Position 164th of 178 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Cropland Nitrogen BalanceFAO · 2023 · world median 37.63-36.2437.63No real change since 2013
Vanuatu: -36.24 · world median 37.63 · Nitrogen surplus (+) or deficit (−) on cropland, kg per hectare. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from -555.52 to 1,199.
No current reading for Vanuatu
Adjusted Net Savings (last 2020), Agricultural Irrigated Land, Baseline Water Stress (Aqueduct), Carbon Intensity of Electricity (last 2023), Children's Climate Risk Index, Coal Share of Electricity Generation (last 2023), Consumption-Based CO₂ Emissions, Ecological Footprint, Environmentally Related Tax Revenue, Low-Carbon Share of Electricity Generation (last 2023), Operating Coal Power Capacity, Operating Wind Power Capacity, Planetary pressures-adjusted HDI, Renewable Share of Electricity Generation (last 2023), Solar Share of Electricity Generation (last 2023), Water Stress, Water Withdrawal by Sector, Water-Use Efficiency, Wind and Solar Share of Electricity Generation (last 2023) and World Energy Trilemma Index. Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Environment & Sustainability among Vanuatu’s 15 topics
Environment & Sustainability is Vanuatu’s 2nd best-placed topic of 15. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Peace & Security17th of 1772/4 keys
- Environment & Sustainabilityjoint 18th of 1862/4 keys
- Democracy & Civil Libertiesjoint 57th of 1984/4 keys
- Work & Labour88th of 1824/4 keys
- Governance & Institutions98th of 1944/4 keys
- Education & Knowledge106th of 1984/4 keys
- Poverty & Inequality87th of 1592/3 keys
- Gender & Equality105th of 1833/4 keys
- Development & Human Capital123rd of 1963/3 keys
- Health & Wellbeing130th of 2002/4 keys
- Digital & Technologyjoint 133rd of 1984/4 keys
- Economy & Innovationjoint 132nd of 1762/4 keys
- Food & Agriculture153rd of 1844/4 keys
- Risk & Resilience163rd of 1933/4 keys
- Mobility & Trade154th of 1772/4 keys
No standing on Energy: too few of those topics’ key statistics are published for this country.
06The top of the list
Who leads on environment & sustainability
The three countries placed highest of 186, and the leaders Vanuatu can most readily be measured against.
1
AngolaMiddle Africa
1st of 186 · 3 of 4 keys
Photo: Paulo César Santos derivative work: Jjtkk · CC0, greyscale
- 2
São Tomé and PríncipeMiddle Africa
2nd of 186 · 3 of 4 keys
3
Sierra LeoneWestern Africa
3rd of 186 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Annabel Symington derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY 2.0, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Oceania
Solomon Islands7th2/4 keysThis page
Vanuatu=18th2/4 keys
Positions out of 186 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Questions
Vanuatu on environment & sustainability: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Vanuatu rank on environment & sustainability?
Vanuatu is placed joint 18th of 186 countries on Environment & Sustainability in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 4 key statistics (CO₂ Emissions per Capita and Organic Agricultural Area). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest CO₂ Emissions per Capita figure for Vanuatu?
0.601 in 2024 (fossil CO₂ (tonnes per person)), according to Global Carbon Project. The world median in the same edition was 3.21.
What is the latest Organic Agricultural Area figure for Vanuatu?
3.98 in 2024 (organic share of agricultural land (%)), according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The world median in the same edition was 0.725.
How have Vanuatu’s environment & sustainability figures changed?
CO₂ Emissions per Capita rose from 0.452 in 2000 to 0.601 in 2024; Organic Agricultural Area fell from 5.57 in 2006 to 3.98 in 2024.
Which environment & sustainability statistics are missing for Vanuatu?
No current reading is published for Vanuatu on Adjusted Net Savings, Agricultural Irrigated Land, Baseline Water Stress (Aqueduct), Carbon Intensity of Electricity, Children's Climate Risk Index, Coal Share of Electricity Generation, Consumption-Based CO₂ Emissions, Ecological Footprint, Environmentally Related Tax Revenue, Low-Carbon Share of Electricity Generation, Operating Coal Power Capacity, Operating Wind Power Capacity, Planetary pressures-adjusted HDI, Renewable Share of Electricity Generation, Solar Share of Electricity Generation, Water Stress, Water Withdrawal by Sector, Water-Use Efficiency, Wind and Solar Share of Electricity Generation and World Energy Trilemma Index. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
08Keep reading
Explore further
Vanuatu, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions98th of 194
- Economy & Innovation=132nd of 176
- Work & Labour88th of 182
- Education & Knowledge106th of 198
- Health & Wellbeing130th of 200
- Development & Human Capital123rd of 196
- Gender & Equality105th of 183
- Democracy & Civil Liberties=57th of 198
- Peace & Security17th of 177
- Risk & Resilience163rd of 193
- Mobility & Trade154th of 177
- Food & Agriculture153rd of 184
- Poverty & Inequality87th of 159
- Digital & Technology=133rd of 198
- The full Vanuatu profile
Nearby, on environment & sustainability
The key statistics, for every country
09Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Air quality and biodiversity are not keys, because the site does not yet hold data for them that passes every test. Forest cover, farmland, farm emissions and the renewable share of electricity are published here as context. Exposure to natural hazards belongs to Risk & Resilience.
How the Environment & Sustainability standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 4 indicators on this topic are keys and 49 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2023 to 2025, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 2 of this topic’s 4 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 186 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 4.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- CO₂ Emissions per Capita — Global Carbon Project, CC BY 4.0
- Water Stress — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), CC BY 4.0
- Organic Agricultural Area — Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), CC BY 4.0
- Ecological Footprint — Global Footprint Network, CC BY-SA 4.0
The other 31 statistics on this page come from 12 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Vanuatu’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Vanuatu (banner) — Phillip Capper derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY 2.0
- Angola — Paulo César Santos derivative work: Jjtkk, CC0
- Sierra Leone — Annabel Symington derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY 2.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Vanuatu: Environment & Sustainability — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/vanuatu/environment