"In Cyprus, we are facing a very serious demographic problem, as the birth rate stands at 1.3 percent—one of the lowest in Europe," said President of the Republic Nicos Christodoulides, adding that through various measures and a very specific plan, we are working to address this major challenge.
Speaking at the opening of the Community Daycare Center in the Sounio-Zantzia Community, the President emphasized that “our country’s economic situation is good; our fiscal responsibility allows us—and this is what we want to do at the end of the day—to channel growth back to the citizens. And to return growth to the citizens, we must invest—it is an investment, not an expense—in three areas: education, health, and social services.”
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“In our country, we are facing a very serious problem known as the demographic crisis. Currently, our country’s birth rate is 1.3%, among the lowest in Europe, and as a country we need at least 2.1% to ensure population replacement every 25 years,” the President noted.
And here, he added, “lies our great responsibility as a state: to create all the necessary conditions to encourage young families who face so many challenges, so that through our policies we can also address the demographic issue.”
“And to help families—specifically to help families in communities—as a state we have an obligation to provide the same services in three areas,” he said.
The first area, President Christodoulides said, is Education; the second is Health; and the third is the welfare state.
“And it is precisely this responsibility of ours— this role—we fully understand, and we are pleased that through interventions and a very specific plan, we are working together to address this major challenge,” he continued.
He spoke about the importance the government places on rural areas and, in particular, on strengthening social care services, which is an essential part of the state’s approach.
Referring to the Community Daycare Center, he said that it is a project that addresses a real need in the area and makes a decisive contribution to improving the quality of life for families in the community and enhancing their daily lives. “Today we are here to inaugurate a daycare center; we are moving forward because we must provide opportunities for children ages 4–6,” he said.
President Christodoulides also announced the decision to build an elementary school in Souni Zanatzia. He stated, “It makes no sense for more than 150 children to leave the community to go to Limassol, especially since we managed to bring these families here. Therefore, we are moving forward with the construction of the elementary school.”
Regarding the multipurpose center, he noted that the project involves a cost of approximately 1.5 million euros; the funding has been secured, and we are starting with 400,000 euros within the year so that the implementation phase can begin.
He also mentioned other projects in the community, such as paving community roads, the square’s landscaping, and the community café, while noting that the community is now part of plans to allocate plots of land to families—a step he described as crucial for further boosting the influx of people.
“It’s impressive—in 2024 you decided to pursue this, and by 2026 it was up and running,” said the President, adding that “the Vice President of the community said that the projects were ready; they managed to obtain urban planning and building permits within two weeks—that’s a record.”
He went on to say that Cyprus has secured, through a combination of European funds and national funding, a total of 3.5 billion euros for projects throughout free Cyprus, which will be decided upon by the Council of Ministers in September 2027.
“You have ten months to develop these projects with the help of the EOA so that they can be approved by the Cabinet and we can immediately begin implementing all of them. It is therefore up to you to finalize the projects and come to us,” he concluded.
Source: CNA
