Christodoulides urges more spending to raise Cyprus’ birth rate

Souni-Zanakia, Cyprus. President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday that greater government investment was needed to raise Cyprus’ birth rate. He was speaking at the opening of a new nursery school in Souni-Zanakia, a village in Limassol district.

Support for families

Christodoulides described the country’s demographic situation as a serious challenge, saying the birth rate was 1.3 per cent, among Europe’s lowest. He said a minimum rate of 2.1 per cent was necessary for population replacement over each 25-year period.

The president said the state bore a major responsibility to establish conditions that would help young families cope with the many difficulties they faced. Government policies needed to tackle the demographic problem while supporting families, particularly village residents, he added.

He identified education, health and welfare as three areas in which the government was obliged to provide services. Christodoulides said the government understood that responsibility and was pleased to be working collaboratively on the challenge through targeted measures and a clearly defined plan.

Discounted land scheme

In a recent announcement, Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said the government would make approximately 570 building plots available to young families, enabling them to purchase land and construct homes at substantially lower costs.

According to the ministry, the plots would be spread across Cyprus and offered at 25 per cent of market value. It said the scheme would provide a significant opportunity for young families and households on low or middle incomes to obtain land for their own homes.

Eligibility is restricted to Cypriot nationals who are couples, whether or not they have children, or single-parent families. For couples, at least one partner must be under 45 when applying, and their existing residence must be less than 15 kilometres from the plot they intend to purchase.

The annual salary ceiling for an applicant household is €45,000 for couples without children or single-parent households. The limit rises to €50,000 for three-person families, €55,000 for four-person families and €65,000 for households comprising five or more people.