Marios Tannousis: One of the best ways for development and investment is public and private sector partnership

Public-private partnership (PPP) can lead to major investment opportunities and change the development landscape with benefits for both the state and private organisations.

With this in mind, Cyprus will host the leading international conference ‘Unlocking Investment Through Public – Private Partnerships International Summit' on 26 and 27 March, 2025, at the Hilton Nicosia, which aims to highlight and elaborate on the opportunities that public-private partnerships can create.

The conference, organised by Invest Cyprus, the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) and the World Association of PPP Units & Professionals (WAPPP) and under the auspices of the Republic of Cyprus, will feature experts from abroad and government officials, presenting successful examples of PPPs, opportunities and current trends.

In fact, on the second day of the conference, a practical workshop will be held, during which participants will have the opportunity to be actively involved and informed about all the important aspects of contracts between the public and private sectors.

The importance of PPPs and the conference

Speaking to InBusinessNews on the occasion of the organisation of the conference, Invest Cyprus CEO Marios Tannousis stressed that "the partnership between the private and public sectors –Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs)-- is a best practice followed in many countries, since many important projects, mainly involving infrastructure, due to their size, financing difficulties, lack of know-how and other factors, are often difficult to promote and implement without this type of partnership.

"The most important thing," Tannousis continued, "is that economies and countries that want to modernise themselves and have projects that contribute to the further development and competitiveness of the economy, such as airports, ports, marinas, desalination plants, etc., choose this method, since PPPs are considered one of the best ways for a country to create economic growth with such projects and at the same time bring about modernisation in the various projects per sector being carried out."

As the CEO of Invest Cyprus explained, "countries that want to be competitive are trying to emphasise the importance of and further promote public-private partnerships."

In this context, Tannousis underlined, "we are organising this conference, which we believe will help first of all to identify what the needs are, as well as to understand how such projects are prepared so that they can be carried out by specialists, such as WAPPP, WAIPA, the European Investment Bank, representatives of which will be in Cyprus and will participate in the conference."

He also added that on the second day of the conference, a workshop will be held through which relevant individuals, mainly from the public sector, will be able to enrich their knowledge, "with the aim of helping Cyprus acquire projects that can attract investment and help the economy become more competitive through partnerships between the public and private sectors."

According to the CEO of Invest Cyprus, the speakers who will participate in the various panels and the workshop are considered world experts in their field and "therefore we believe that the organisation of the conference will contribute significantly to our effort to promote this model, which can really help the economy, but also create new jobs, while strengthening the competitiveness of Cyprus."

Successful examples

Responding to a relevant question, Tannousis indicated that the examples of the airports and the port of Limassol demonstrate the importance of private and public sector cooperation and can form the basis for promoting other important projects in Cyprus.

Such projects, he pointed out, can be either large or small-scale, such as the development of marinas, ports, desalination plants, etc.

Topics and speakers

It is worth mentioning that the ‘Unlocking Investment Through Public – Private Partnerships International Summit’ will cover a wide range of topics, with the participation of leading experts from around the world.

Some of the key sections include the following:

• The importance of PPPs and FDI for economic development: How partnerships can accelerate economic progress and enhance the sustainability of public projects.
• Legal and Regulatory Frameworks for Public-Private Partnerships: Analysis of the policies and procedures required for the successful implementation of PPPs.
• Best practices and successful examples from other countries: Case studies from countries that have successfully implemented PPPs and what Cyprus can learn from them.
• Implementation Challenges and Strategies: Discussion of the key obstacles and solutions for the effective implementation of PPP projects.
• Networking with international investors and funding bodies: Opportunities for meetings and collaborations with important players in the investment sector.

Special workshop for the development of attractive investment projects

One of the most important innovations of the conference will be the special workshop that will be held for the preparation and promotion of attractive investment projects.

Participants will have the opportunity to work with leading consultants, develop promotional strategies and ensure that their projects can attract the interest of international investors.

For more information about the conference click HERE

(Source: InBusinessNews)