Nicosia Chamber of Commerce gets own centre

Business leaders call for projects to be speeded up in Cyprus

The Nicosia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EVEL) will soon have its own multi-purpose centre within the Strovolos Industrial Estate, which will house the Chamber’s various services, research and design facilities, conference and training halls under one roof.
The new Centre, the foundations of which were laid by President Demetris Christofias on Friday, will also include banking and postal services in order to facilitate the Chamber members as well as businesses in the area.
EVEL chairman Christodoulos Angastiniotis thanked Christofias and Commerce and Industry Minister Antonis Paschalides for offering the land on a long-term lease. Nicosia has 17 industrial zones and three industrial estates that account for about 45% of the national industrial production and nearly 50% of all jobs in the manufacturing sector.
However, he quickly turned to criticise the government in its delay to implement major infrastructure and public projects.
Angastiniotis said that the “scandalously high” public sector payroll is having dire consequences on the viability of the economy and called on the Christofias administration to take the bold and necessary “corrective measures” to bring the matter under control.
The EVEL chairman said that the government should proceed to start or complete work on major public projects, as the market sentiment and confidence in the economy has diminished.
He expressed the Chamber’s disappointment in the government decision to postpone grand projects, such as the Centre of the Arts, the new Archaeological Museum and the development of the Old GSP area, saying that these delays could cost the loss of some EUR 100 mln from European Union development finds.
However, Angastiniotis admitted that the Centre of the Arts has cost the state some 15 mln euros so far, with a further 8 mln spent on moving government offices from that area to new locations.