Over 50% increase in approved European funds for Cyprus, Interior Minister says

The amount approved for the Republic of Cyprus by the European Commission for the 2021-2027 Programming Period has increased by more than 50% compared to the previous programming period, the Minister of Interior, Constantinos Ioannou, has said.

He was speaking at the recent 3rd Meeting of the Monitoring Committees of the Home Affairs Funds 2021-2027 at Nicosia Town Hall.

In relation to the 2021-2027 Programming Period, the Minister of Interior stated that so far the European Commission has approved the allocation of a total of €188 million to the Republic of Cyprus, an amount which is increased by more than 50% compared to the previous programming period. Accordingly, for 2025, this amount is expected to increase further, he added. “With the addition of the national funding of €41 million, the total amount for the 2021-2027 Programming Period already amounts to €229 million,” he noted.

Furthermore, Konstantinos Ioannou said that the European Commission directly approved additional funds of €82 million for the implementation of projects related to the effective management of the migration issue.

In his 22 November address, the Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection, Dr. Nicholas A. Ioannides, pointed out that the Reception and Accommodation Centre in the Limnes area is a “large-scale project.”

Ioannides said that “the construction of the Reception and Accommodation Centre in the Limnes area is expected to contribute significantly to the capacity of the Republic of Cyprus, on the one hand, to provide appropriate living conditions during the temporary accommodation of asylum seekers and, on the other hand, to increase the rate and number of repatriations of those who do not meet the criteria for residence in the Republic”.

The Deputy Minister of Migration spoke of “a large-scale project that will decisively strengthen the reception, asylum and return system of the Republic of Cyprus”, adding that the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection looks forward to the continuation and further development of synergies with the Directorate of European Funds and the European Commission.

“Through the projects that received funding both during the previous Programming Period and for the current Programming Period 2021-2027, infrastructure was created and upgraded with the aim of improving the reception and provision of hospitality to applicants for international protection,” he noted.

The Deputy Minister of Migration also said that “the acceleration of the examination of applications for the issuance of a residence permit in the Republic was achieved, as well as the increase in the efficiency of the Immigration Department in issuing return decisions to third-country nationals who did not have the right to legal residence in the Republic.”

(Source: CNA)