Cyprus Business Now

Government employment in Cyprus experienced a 1 per cent increase year-on-year in November 2022, according to a report released on Monday by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat).

The increase has been primarily attributed to an increase in temporary staff, especially in public education employees.

According to the report, government employment in November 2022 increased by 519 people, a rise of 1 per cent compared to the corresponding month of 2021, and reached 53,537 people.

In terms of permanent staff, there was a decrease of 747 people, which corresponds to a percentage decrease of 2.8 per cent, from 26,261 to 25,514 people.

In temporary staff there was an increase of 6.3 per cent by 1,165 people, reaching 19,626 compared to 18,461 people in November 2021.

Moreover, an increase was observed across all personnel categories, with the exception of security forces personnel, where a 0.4 per cent decrease took place.

The largest increase took place in public education staff with a rise of 3.1 per cent, attributed to a 13 per cent increase in temporary staff.

When compared to October 2022, public education and security forces staff rose by 1.3 per cent respectively.

Finally, public service employees and hourly staff decreased by 0.3 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively.

The private education sector in Limassol saw a number of new investments and expansions in 2022, across all education stages, with the primary objective being to cover any gaps in the education market, particularly after the increase in international companies and professionals over the past few years.

One project is the Island Private School, which has secured certifications as a pre-primary, primary and secondary school, and opened in November of this year.

The international English-language school has more than 700 students and took just four months to be completed.

The school, which has five labs, two art studios, a pool and sports facilities, is expected to have more than 1,600 students by 2024.

Another project is the Absolute Institute of Technical Education which is a post-secondary institute for vocational education and training.

The school is housed in a modern building in Germasogeia and aims to significantly strengthen vocational education and training in Cyprus.

In addition, the school, which has a budget of €8.5 million, is expected to accept its first students within 2023.

Finally, the third educational project that has begun operating in Limassol is the Ecole Franco Chypriote (EFCN).

The EFCN is a non-profit private school established in 2012 by the French and Cypriot governments under the France-Cyprus Bilateral Agreement of 1969. Its education programmes run from kindergarten to graduation.

The school’s main language is French and students can choose between French or bilingual academic programmes.

In the bilingual programme, students are taught in both French and Greek.

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) ended Monday, December 12 with profits.

The general Cyprus Stock Market Index was at 89.65 points at 13:20 during the day, reflecting a rise of 0.71 per cent over the previous day of trading.

The FTSE / CySE 20 Index was at 54.02 points, representing an increase of 0.75 per cent.

The total value of transactions came up to €34,339.

In terms of the sub-indexes, the main and investment firm indexes rose by 1.01 per cent and 0.39 per cent respectively, while the alternative index fell by 0.23 per cent. The hotel index also fell, contracting by 0.75 per cent.

The biggest investment interest was attracted by the Bank of Cyprus (+1.41 per cent), Hellenic Bank (+1.47 per cent), Tsokkos Hotels (-2.5 per cent), Demetra Holdings (+0.41 per cent), and KG Complex (no change).