At a press conference on Wednesday, Cipa’s general director Natasa Pyllidou outlined the agency’s plans until 2020 and presented the new ‘invest Cyprus’ logo as part of its efforts to make Cyprus more visible and interesting to investors.

“There has been an impressive recovery of the Cypriot economy which created the need to redefine priorities and redesign the strategy to optimise the opportunities that emerge,” she said.

She conceded that it would take time for Cyprus to turn around its image which was tarnished due to the economic problems in the recent past, but said there was renewed interest by investors, both by those based in Cyprus in the past and new ones from abroad.

One of Cipa’s goals is also to turn Brexit into an advantage for Cyprus. Others are to further the development of sectors such as innovation, investment funds, the audiovisual industry and education.

Brexit has created an instability in the EU and in the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean, and the stable environment of Cyprus has the possibility of attracting investors using modern internet marketing and electronic government, Pyllidou explained.

The director referred to the agency’s new digital strategy, which aims to utilise internet tools, channels and social media for a targeted promotion of Cyprus abroad. A specific objective, she noted, is to make use of these networks for the immediate and reliable provision of valuable information to SMEs on investment-related issues.

In addition to attempting to attract and provide support to potential foreign investors, the agency’s new strategy also focuses on strengthening its relationship with existing foreign investors by introducing systematic communication to discuss and solve problems.

On the subject of promoting Cyprus as an investment destination, she said that this should continue to be exploited but it needed some restructuring. It was necessary, for example, to stop the current uncontrolled advertising and to check the reasons for the investments, so as not to have “people who buy a flat which will then remain empty to get a passport”.

The new Cipa board chairman, Michalis Michael, focused on the invaluable role the agency plays in capitalising on the new growth dynamics.

“Promoting the competitive advantages of Cyprus as an investment destination and contributing to the effort for structural reforms that will improve the business environment are the primary objectives of the agency,” he said. “Cipa’s new strategy and targeted actions to harness the opportunities that emerge are steps in the right direction and serve the wider effort to strengthen the country’s growth prospects.”

Media representatives were also briefed on the new initiative of the agency, ‘Invest career’, which aims to match the growing needs of companies to employ talented professionals looking for employment opportunities in Cyprus.

As Pyllidou said, the initiative is in the final stage of implementation and will soon be put into operation. The goal of the organisation, she explained, is to attract a high quality workers, especially Cypriots who, in the absence of opportunities in previous years, are now working abroad. At this stage, the agency is communicating with major employers, while focus groups are being held in Nicosia and Limassol to collect feedback on the platform’s operation.

Source: Cyprus Mail