The Director General of the Ministry of Interior, Dr Kostas Constantinou, as the representative of the Republic of Cyprus at the Conference of Peripheral and Coastal Regions of Europe (CPMR), participated on June 7, 2022, in special meetings and a working lunch, in Strasbourg, with regional governors, members of governments responsible for island policy, the President of the European Parliament Ms Roberta Metsola, the Commissioner for Regional Policy Ms Elisa Ferreira, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Regional Development Mr. Younous Omarjee and other MEPs.
During the meetings, views were exchanged on the need to formulate integrated strategies that will enable the islands of the European Union to face the challenges and overcome the obstacles created by their island character, as well as on how to promote an island policy on the political agenda of the European Union. The specificities of Cyprus were highlighted, as the most remote Member State, as well as the state with the proportionally largest migratory flows.
In the context of the same visit, Mr. Constantinou attended the debate in the Plenary of the European Parliament on the report of the President of the European Parliament's Regional Development Committee, Mr. Younous Omarjee, on "Islands and Cohesion Policy: current situation and future challenges". The European Parliament adopted the report in a resolution by a historically strong vote (577 votes in favour, 38 against and 10 abstentions).
This report and the resolution of the European Parliament call for a specific programme and a Pact for the islands of the European Union, aimed at reducing the socio-economic gap between mainland and island regions, promoting development, sustainability, accessibility, transport, innovation, tourism, digital technology and biodiversity. The peripheral and outermost European island regions have a population of more than 20 million inhabitants, spread over some 2,400 islands belonging to 13 countries and representing 4.6% of the EU population.
The adoption of the European Parliament's resolution is an important opportunity for Cyprus, as an island country, as the development of a European island strategy further strengthens the economic, social, environmental and territorial cohesion of our country.
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