Extending the Neighbourhood Social Workers' Programme, by placing social workers throughout the country, marks another step towards the creation of a genuine welfare state, the President of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, said on Thursday.

President Christodoulides was addressing a conference on the "Restructuring of Social Welfare Services" project, focusing on the implementation of the co-funded Neighbourhood Social Workers' Programme, part of the Cohesion Policy Programme “THALIA 2021-2027”.

The Programme will be implemented from May onwards in 106 municipalities and communities, through 29 programmes nationwide, with 32 social workers and 10 supervisors.

During the conference, held in the outskirts of Nicosia, a series of Memoranda of Understanding were signed between the Social Welfare Services and Mayors/ Community Council Presidents for a nationwide implementation of the Neighbourhood Social Workers' programme.

"It is the duty of the State, my personal goal, but also the goal of our governance to provide all the guarantees for the well-being of citizens and especially those of our fellow citizens who need the support of social services", said President Christodoulides, noting that the launch of the nationwide expansion of the "Neighbourhood Social Worker Programme", through the placement of social workers throughout the country "marks another step towards the effective welfare state that we have promised to society, thus reducing in practice the distance between citizens and the state, between society and central government."

The President of the Republic welcomed the great response from the municipalities and communities, both those that participated in the pilot programme and those that signed the memoranda of understanding, expressing confidence that the cooperation between the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare and the Local Authorities will be "excellent and exemplary."

In her address, the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Marilena Evangelou, said that the Neighbourhood Social Workers' programme is a social service envisioned in the governance programme of President Christodoulides. She noted that the evaluation of the pilot implementation confirmed that the programme is a necessity for local communities, and is something that was missing, in order to reduce the distance between citizens and social services.

Evangelou explained that one of the roles the Neighbourhood Social Workers have is, among others, to identify local problems in the communities or municipalities where they are posted and to network with local authorities and important institutions, such as the police, schools, and the church.

The Deputy Head of the European Commission Representation in Cyprus, Nikos Isaris, said from his part that the EU has launched many actions under the European Pillar of Social Rights, such as the European Care Strategy, which provides guidelines for actions on early childhood education and care, as well as long-term care.

He added that Cyprus, through a single national programme, benefits from 1 billion euros of cohesion policy funding, explaining that the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) will invest 222.2 million euros to finance actions that respond to the challenges of the labour market, society, education and training.

The Acting Director of Social Welfare Services, Maria Kyratzi, speaking about the project "Restructuring of Social Welfare Services", said that the budget of the project is 48 million euros and 60% is co-funded by the EU. She said that the implementation period is from 2021 to 2027. Kyratzi noted that on average, 250-270 people visit the local social services offices daily, while more than 50,000 people visited the services in 2023.

At the same time, Kyratzi, referring to the Neighbourhood Social Workers' programme, said that it is part of the restructuring of Social Welfare Services, with a budget of 11 million euros. She noted that from May onwards, the programme will be implemented in 106 municipalities and communities through 29 programmes nationwide, with 32 social workers and 10 supervisors.

The President of the Union of Cyprus Communities, Andreas Kitromilides, speaking to reporters, said that the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding for the extension of the programme of Social Workers on a nationwide basis is an issue that has been discussed for some time with the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare.

On behalf of the Union of Municipalities, Giannakis Hadjidimitriou, stated that it has been a standing position of the Union of Municipalities that Municipalities and Local Authorities can and must contribute to the social activities of the country.