Building permits in Cyprus saw a sharp decline in July 2024, with only 97 permits authorised, it emerged on Wednesday.

This marks a stark contrast to the 604 permits issued in July 2023, according to data from the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat).

This marked decrease coincides with the transition of authority from local municipalities to the newly established self-governance districit organisations (Eoa) on July 1, 2024, and ongoing difficulties with the ‘Ippodamos’ information system.

Despite the substantial drop in July, the broader trend from January to July 2024 shows a 15,8 per cent increase in permit issuance year-on-year, with 4,879 permits granted compared to 4,212 during the same period in 2023.

The total value of these permits increased by 24,4 per cent and the total area by 26,4 per cent.

The value of permits issued in July amounted to €42.9 million, covering 28.3 thousand square metres and enabling the construction of 156 dwelling units.

The service mentioned that “the steep reduction in July’s permit issuance is largely due to initial teething problems with the ‘Ippodamos’ system”.

This, the statement continued, “impeded data recording and delayed the statistics production for building permits”.

These issues continue to affect the system’s performance, challenging the service’s ability to deliver timely and accurate data.

Cystat has been actively coordinating with the Ministry of the Interior, the various local district organisations, and the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy to address these operational challenges.

It also said that “intensive efforts are underway to quickly rectify the system’s deficiencies and ensure the ongoing production of reliable statistics”.