Together, we are changing Cyprus, President, Nikos Christodoulides, said on Wednesday, in his televised address on the assessment of his second year of governance, noting, “we have proven that we do not hesitate to tackle serious and standing problems as well as decades-old ills.”
He also announced the Government’s decision to reduce the VAT on the price of electricity for domestic consumption from 19% to 9%.
He also said that he is going to the informal meeting on Cyprus in Geneva and with the sole aim of paving the way for the resumption of negotiations from where they were interrupted in the summer of 2017.
In his address, broadcast on Wednesday evening right before being interviewed live by journalists from five television stations, President Christodoulides, said that they achieved the implementation of 90% of the main actions he had announced, as well as many other policies included in the Annual Action Plans of the Ministries and Deputy Ministries.
“The policies that we implemented reflect our political philosophy – social liberalism, as well as our human-centric approach,” he added.
Referring to the economy, he said his government achieved “one of the highest growth rates in the Eurozone, reaching 3.4% of GDP in 2024”.
He noted that, after 13 years, international rating agencies upgraded Cyprus’ credit rating to investment grade A.
He also referred to a “significant reduction” in public debt, “approaching the target of reducing it to 60% of GDP” and said that the Government had created conditions for full employment, limiting unemployment to 4.9%, the lowest since 2008, and increasing employment to a rate approaching 80%.
He also said that average salary increased by 13.2%, and social security pensions by 6%, “the highest since 1996”.
President Christodoulides also said that, during his second year in office, they promoted “important policies to enhance competitiveness and develop key sectors of the economy”, while at the same time, through targeted actions, “we achieved the strengthening of the Cyprus ship registry by 18%, while the tourism industry also recorded historic records, with more than 4 million visitors and revenues that exceeded 3 billion euros”.
The President also referred to the direct support measures for households and businesses to address the crisis, amounting to more than 760 million euro, interventions regarding the demographic policy, and housing policy schemes, among other things.
He referred to the policies for education and healthcare, culture and sport, noting that “they reflect our obligation towards every citizen”.
Regarding energy, President Christodoulides announced, the Government’s decision to reduce VAT on the price of electricity for domestic consumption from 19% to 9%.
He also noted the implementation of a roadmap for energy adequacy and cheaper energy costs, and for environmental protection and referred to the signing of two “important agreements” with Egypt for the commercial exploitation of natural gas. He noted that drilling was underway and that the results were expected within the coming days.
According to President Christodoulides, 2024 “was also a landmark year for migration and its effective management, with significant, tangible results”, noting that arrivals decreased by 64% compared to 2022, and that the percentage departures over arrivals increased from 43% in 2022 to 179% in 2024, “with our country ranking first among EU states in the ratio of departures to arrivals”.
Among other things, President Christodoulides said that there was “clear” political will to enhance the country’s reputation and “zero tolerance for corruption”, referring to the signing of a Memorandum with the US on the detection and prosecution of financial crime with the contribution of the FBI, “while we launched an international campaign to restore our country’s reputation”.
Referring to the Cyprus issue, he said that from the first day of assuming his duties, his main goal was the resumption of substantive talks for a solution to the Cyprus issue based on the agreed framework. He noted that he will be in Geneva on Sunday for the expanded meeting on Cyprus, as a result of the Secretary-General’s new initiative that began with the New York meeting on October 15.
“I am going to the meeting with all seriousness and with the sole aim of paving the way for the resumption of negotiations from where they were interrupted in the summer of 2017 and achieving the goal of liberating and reunifying our homeland,” he said. The current state of affairs cannot be the future of our country, said President Christodoulides.
In closing, he said that within two years of his governance, “we have proven that we do not hesitate to tackle serious and longstanding problems as well as decades-old ills.”
Two years later, we continue together with new important interventions and reforms, he said, stating that “together, we are changing Cyprus”.
Also read: President fully prepared to resume negotiations at Geneva talks
Source: CNA
