The state is working on a plan to alleviate social problems and ensure that citizens are happy President Nikos Christodoulides, said.

Speaking at an event in Limassol on Tuesday, marking five years of operation of a food donation programme by independent non-profit Kepaky, the president said social policy and charitable works can only be carried out when a country’s economy is performing well.

“For the state to be able to implement a social policy, and for you to carry out this charitable work, the country’s economy must first and foremost be performing well. Because if a country’s economy is not doing well, the society is the first to suffer,” he said.

Christodoulides said the government places great emphasis on economic growth and that the development of Limassol was a positive outcome.

The president went on to say that it was important to guard against the city’s development turning into a failure for its residents. “We, as a state and as a nation, must ask ourselves where we want to take our country,” he said, adding that the government aims to promote investments across Cyprus which will lead to well-paid jobs.

Job opportunities exist but Cypriots are not qualified for them in sufficient numbers, the president said, and therefore companies are forced to bring in personnel from abroad.

“We do not have enough compatriots to be employed and many companies bring in personnel from abroad with significantly higher salaries,” he said.

Despite the fact that Cyprus ranks second in Europe in higher education qualifications, with 93 per cent of high school and technical school graduates continuing on to tertiary degrees, and an unemployment rate below 5 per cent for the first time since 2008, the situation persists, Christodoulides said.

“We are still forced to go to London on May 21st to present tax reliefs and other incentives to encourage Cypriots to return and work in their country,” the president added.

Christodoulides said around 760 individuals had “shown interest” in the new legislative framework facilitating the return of Cypriot talent [so-called “brain gain”], and are “considering coming back to work in Cyprus.”

The president went on to say that the educational system must change and that the problem was multi-faceted, also touching on low birth rates.

“We’ve reached a point where we no longer form families, with a birth rate of 1.4. A country needs a rate of at least 2.1 to ensure population renewal every 25 years.“

“That is why we must change our country. That is why we are working, based on a specific plan and strategy. It won’t change in a day or a year but […] as we’ve proven, we can succeed and tackle all these challenges,” he concluded.