Finance Minister Makis Keravnos has said that full absorption of cohesion funds by Cyprus resulted to an increase of its GDP by 6%.

The Minister participated in the General Affairs Council (Cohesion) held on Thursday in Brussels and according to a press release by the Ministry, the EU Ministers discussed the possibility of strengthening the joint management of Cohesion Policy funds. They also approved the Council’s Conclusions regarding the role of Cohesion Policy in addressing demographic challenges.

Keravnos in his intervention noted that competitiveness is built from the bottom up, and Cohesion funds can act as a driving force for balanced growth and employment, regardless of the size of the country or region.

He highlighted the need to maintain the basic principles of Cohesion Policy and argued that the institutional capacity of national and local authorities should be enhanced for a more efficient management and utilization of investments.

FinMin also argued that reforms boost competitiveness, noting, however, that these should be aligned with the objectives of Cohesion Policy and directly linked to investments for green, digital and demographic transitions.

In a statement after the Council's meeting he said that Cyprus’ GDP increased by 6% because of cohesion funds’ absorption, adding that "this resulted in the creation of 24,000 new jobs." He also said that investments led to high added value projects on the island, in the fields of energy, environment, digital transition and social justice.

Keravnos expressed "hope that the in the new phase that this cohesion policy is going through, it will provide more social, economic and political  benefits for all EU member states in full transparency."