The strengthening of mountainous areas is one of the important policies of the Government, says Yf. Social Welfare – What he said at the opening ceremony of the 42nd Lefkara Art and Culture Festival
The strengthening of the mountainous regions and the countryside is one of the important policies of the Government, stated the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Marilena Evangelou, who represented the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulidis, at the opening ceremony of the 42nd Lefkara Art and Culture Festival on Saturday evening.
He also assured that “the Government will continue to work in the direction of strengthening both our mountainous regions and the countryside”.
Mrs. Evangelou stated that the 42nd Lefkara Art and Culture Festival is a Festival which attracts visitors from all over Cyprus as well as tourists to the beautiful, picturesque village of Lefkara, with its traditional architecture, narrow and its winding streets and its unique houses with tiled roofs. The village is world-renowned for its traditional embroidered lace handicrafts and silver wirework, the art of which has been practiced in Lefkara since the time of the Venetians, he pointed out.
Ms. Evangelou said that “the Festival has been established as a celebration, as an important summer cultural event of inspiration and creation, but also of escape and joy”.
He noted that “events like this one, which was established to be organized in Lefkara, give life and vitality to our villages. It is through these events that we come closer to our roots, that we know our traditions, our place, but also that we are given the opportunity to develop culture, arts and quality activity, he pointed out.
He stated that the strengthening of mountainous areas and the countryside is one of the important policies of the Government. All the co-competent Ministries and Deputy Ministries have targeted policies with specific implementation schedules, the progress of which we present at regular intervals before the Council of Ministers, he said.
He underlined that just recently a session was held in the presence of the Commissioner of Mountainous Areas during which the policies of the Government were reviewed and the challenges and issues that concern the mountainous areas were raised by the Commissioner. The assurance is that the Government will continue to work in the direction of strengthening both our mountainous regions and the countryside, he underlined.
As the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare he said, “we have formulated a comprehensive social policy, which covers all Cypriot needs, serving families, children, the elderly and people with disabilities through its departments and services, namely the Services of Social Welfare, the Department of Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities and the Welfare Benefits Management Service.
Through the State Support Plans and through the Recovery and Resilience Plan, he said, “we finance and support Local Government Authorities, but also Non-Governmental Organizations, for the development and operation of nurseries with opening hours that serve working parents, children's employment centers that also operate during the evening hours, seniors' shelters and day centers for the elderly, but also services and programs for people with disabilities. This social policy is designed after thorough research and mapping of the real needs arising in each region.
At the same time, he said that we are further developing our policies in relation to supporting the family and the elderly, through the expansion of the beneficiaries of the Tuition Subsidy and Feeding Scheme for children up to 4.5 years old, but also through the National Strategy for the Third Age, which is in the final stage of completion by the Deputy Ministry and will soon be submitted to the Council of Ministers”.
He noted that “the authorities of local self-government are for the Deputy Ministry Social Welfare key partners and fellow travelers in the implementation of social policy. Especially after the reform of local government, municipalities and communities can have an increased role in social policy matters. Already our cooperation with the local authorities is good and we have jointly developed programs which are beneficial for society as a whole, such as the Neighborhood Social Worker Program, he said.
He underlined that the Deputy Ministry is at the disposal of the local authorities for further synergies, which will contribute to the improvement of citizens' everyday life, but also to the quick and timely identification of challenges so that they can be dealt with effectively.
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