Cyprus has surpassed the EU average in utilising EU funds through the 2021-2027 multi-annual financial framework, however it still stands at 18.8 per cent of the amount it is entitled to, member of the European Court of Auditors Lefteris Christoforou said on Thursday, presenting House president Annita Demetriou with the report for 2024.

Demetriou said she was “very proud” of Cyprus’ performance and the absorption of EU funds, “particularly in priority sectors identified by the government and parliament”.

The multi-annual financial framework is a long-term budget plan that sets the maximum annual spending limits for a period of at least five years.

Presenting the report, Christoforou said “small Cyprus fully utilised the EU funds for the multi-annual fiscal framework 2014-2020”. He was referring to the framework prior to the current one.

“This highlights the effective management of these funds and the capability of all those involved – government, parliament, civil service, civil servants – who managed to utilise all the money coming from the European budget,” he pointed out.

Regarding the current framework period ending in 2027, Christoforou said “Cyprus stands today at 18.8 per cent, while the EU is at 14 per cent”.

This translates into “€245 million already having been absorbed” for 2024, however “a huge amount of remains to be absorbed”, he added.

auditors, European, Annita Demetriou
Demetriou said she was “very proud” of Cyprus’ performance and the absorption of EU funds, “particularly in priority sectors identified by the government and parliament”.

The €245 million figure includes funds drawn from the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).

On the RRF, Christoforou said that audits of the use of these funds did not flag anything untoward for Cyprus.

“This shows that the authorities, the civil service, the government, parliament and all stakeholders involved in implementing the milestones of the RRF…carried out their duties with the maximum success, so that not even a single euro would be lost from the EU funds.”

Over the past four years, Cyprus has managed to draw €1.28 billion from EU coffers, however it still has €1.65 billion to receive by 2027.

Of the €1.65 billion remaining to be tapped, about €1 billion concerns the multi-annual framework, and €650 million concerns the RRF.

In other remarks, Christoforou told MPs that in 2024 the debt of the EU as a whole reached €600 billion.

The debt consists of bonds purchased by the EU.

In a report released this October, the European Court of Auditors warned that the bloc’s debt level has increased significantly and that within two years borrowing could stand at ten times the level that prevailed before the Covid pandemic.

Following the pandemic, the European Commission borrowed heavily to help the worst affected member states restore their economies.

However, borrowing since then has continued to grow, not least to help Ukraine withstand the Russian invasion.

The Court of Auditors said that by 2027, outstanding EU borrowing could exceed €900 billion, nearly 10 times the 2020 level, in other words, before Covid.