Nikos Christodoulides: Invest Cyprus is launching a major campaign for the rebranding of Cyprus

The President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulidis, has revealed that Invest Cyprus is, within the next few weeks and following a decision of the Government, launching a major campaign for the rebranding of Cyprus.

The news was announced during Christodoulides’ address at the 16th InBusiness Awards ceremony in Nicosia on 25 April.

Emphasizing that Cypriot businesses are at the centre of the Government's efforts, he also announced that following the very successful, targeted meetings with foreign businessmen, the Government is beginning statutory dialogue with Cypriot businessmen.

These have the aim, as the President said, to utilise their many years of experience and know-how and to present to them the pillars in which the state is going to invest, so that they can work together on the basis of specific goals and aspirations.

"For this reason," he noted, "we are planning the first meeting at the end of May, at the Presidential Palace, in the presence of the entire Council of Ministers."

Read the full greeting of the President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides (translated from Greek) below:

It is with great pleasure that I am addressing the 16th "IN BUSINESS AWARDS for 2023" which have now been established as an institution, as a point of reference for the business activities of our country.

So, before any other mentions, I would like to congratulate IMH and IN BUSINESS magazine, who with tonight's event highlight and reward excellence in business.

We, as Government, approach the business community as our closest partners and fellow travelers in this endeavour. After all, the business culture in our country is something we are, and rightly so, very proud of.

Due to its geographical location, since ancient times, Cyprus has been a centre of commercial activity. Today, Cypriot businesses - regardless of size - are the driving force of our economy.

The production of innovative products and services, mainly in sectors of high added value, strengthens the competitiveness and resilience of our economy and shields it in difficult geopolitical times like the ones we are experiencing today.

At the same time, business, the business community in our country has played - and I want to acknowledge this tonight - a very critical role in dealing with the various challenges we have had in recent years and I would like on behalf of the Government and all previous Governments to thank you very much

The dynamism, creativity, dedication to work, flexibility and spirit of cooperation displayed by our entrepreneurs have contributed significantly to the revitalisation of our economy.

After all, you know it much better, the root (επιχειρώ) of the Greek word for business (επιχείρηση) can mean "to dare", "to organise", "to decide", "to strive". Words and concepts that as a people we have put into practice, having many times put our hopes in the business community.

At the same time, in a prosperous democratic society, the role of businesses goes beyond narrow economic boundaries and evolves them into strong pillars of social progress and solidarity.

And this also applies to the state itself, without a strong economy you cannot have a strong social policy.

We are proud of the multitude of our businesses that demonstrate social responsibility, invest in the education and training of their staff, support charitable projects, promote environmental sustainability and the development of culture, thus contributing to the improvement of the daily life of our citizens.

We must therefore reward successful business activity, the implementation of innovative business models and social and environmental awareness, as a minimum token of appreciation and recognition for our entrepreneurs.

That's why we're here tonight, and I take this opportunity to congratulate all of tonight's award nominees and all of you who actually dare to turn your ideas into action, make a difference, and stand out in your field of activity.

Despite multiple regional and geopolitical developments, Cyprus can successfully cope with the international competitive, unstable and unpredictable environment and become, as very aptly recorded in "Vision 2035", one of the best places in the world to live, to work and to be active in.

At the same time, broadening the productive base of our economy, by creating a new growth model that will ensure a more resilient, sustainable and competitive economy, leveraging education, technology, digitisation and the green economy, are very high on our own priorities.

A basic condition for achieving our ambitious goals is fiscal responsibility on the part of the State, a stable and strong financial environment and, of course, continuous bold reforms.

This framework has informed our decisions since the first year of our administration and this framework will continue to inform our decisions during our term. Besides, the successive upgrades by the Evaluation Houses, in addition to proving the positive outlook of our country, are also a vote of confidence for the Government's policies.

Within this context and in order to achieve our goals, Cypriot businesses are at the centre of our efforts.

It is precisely for this reason that following our very successful, targeted meetings with foreign businessmen in our country which resulted in the adoption of improvement incentives to attract further quality investments in Cyprus, I announce tonight that we are starting the institutionalised dialogue with the Cypriots entrepreneurs, with the aim of making use of your many years of experience and know-how, to present to you the pillars in which we are going to invest as a state, so that we can work together on the basis of specific goals and aspirations.

For this reason, we are planning the first meeting at the end of May, at the Presidential Palace, in the presence of the entire Council of Ministers.

It is in the same context that we also started the effort for tax transformation of our country - the last one took place in 2002 - which aims to strengthen the competitiveness of the economy, ensuring fiscal neutrality and being in full alignment with the objectives of the European Green Agreement.

Through the same reasoning, the support we provide to our businesses is also important, through a series of plans, incentives and subsidies, utilising national and European resources, especially in the field of Energy, which is today perhaps the most important challenge we have to face as a State, as a society, as an economy.

At the same time, and on the basis of our strategy, we are taking actions aimed at restoring the reputation and credibility of Cyprus on the international stage.

We must recognise that there is a problem in this particular area. Last week I was in London meeting with potential investors.

The first issue that emerged through the discussions was the name, the reputation, the credibility of our country abroad. We recognise that this problem exists and through both strengthening our country's diplomatic ties and promoting the image of Cyprus - to promote an image we need substance, so it is very important to have substance - to promote the image of Cyprus as a reliable business environment, we contribute to the international recognition of Cypriot businesses.

Let me announce tonight that within the next few weeks, following a decision by the Government, Invest Cyprus will launch a major campaign for the rebranding of our country. An action in which we want you as partners, we want you as fellow travelers.

In closing, I would like to once again extend my warmest congratulations to all the businesses awarded tonight and to each and every one of you for your commitment to excellence. All of you, without any exaggeration, are the catalysts of innovation, dynamism and development of our country and your contribution to our economy and society is invaluable.

On our side, on the side of the State, we will continue to support Cypriot businesses substantially, to ensure, among other things, that entrepreneurship will have all the resources to continue to develop and evolve and to face any challenges to benefit of Cypriot society.

(Source: InBusinessNews)