Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus and Junior Achievement Cyprus (JA Cyprus) are renewing their partnership, continuing their joint efforts to empower young people, help them develop entrepreneurial and employability skills and unlock their potential through practical learning experiences.

The partnership forms part of Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus’ #YouthEmpowered social programme and supports the JA Company Programme, one of Cyprus’ leading youth entrepreneurship programmes. Through the programme, students aged 16–18 can turn a business idea into a real student company and gain experience across every stage of its operation, from team formation and business planning to product or service development, marketing and sales.

Throughout the academic year, student teams are supported by teachers and mentors from the business community and develop skills such as teamwork, communication, leadership, problem-solving and decision-making. The programme culminates in the Company of the Year competition, where the leading student companies present their ideas to a judging panel and the winning team represents Cyprus at the JA Europe European competition.

This year’s results highlighted the growing participation of young people in entrepreneurship across Cyprus. Approximately 550 students took part in the Company Programme 2026, creating dozens of student companies from schools across the country. HerShield, from St. Mary’s School Limassol, was named ‘Company of the Year 2026’ in Cyprus and represented the country at GEN-E 2026 in Riga, Latvia, securing third place in the ‘JA Europe Company of the Year 2026 – Business Track’ category.

“Young people have enormous potential and programmes such as the JA Company Programme help them develop the skills, confidence and practical experience they need for their future. We were delighted and proud to follow the outstanding performance of the Cypriot teams through JA Cyprus this year, culminating in our country receiving international recognition at GEN-E 2026. HerShield’s achievement and third-place finish in the ‘JA Europe Company of the Year 2026 – Business Track’ category is a powerful example of the talent, ambition and innovative thinking demonstrated by young people in Cyprus,” said Andreas Giortsios, Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Manager at Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus.

“As proud supporters of the JA Company Programme through our #YouthEmpowered social programme, we continue to invest in youth entrepreneurship and stand alongside the next generation, providing young people with the skills, experiences and opportunities they need to succeed in further education and employment, for the benefit of our society.”

For her part, Antigoni Komodiki, CEO of JA Cyprus, expressed anticipation at the new possibilities represented by the refreshed collaboration.

“The renewal of our partnership with Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus opens new horizons in entrepreneurship education for young people and reaffirms a shared vision: to equip the next generation with the tools to dream big and turn those dreams into reality with confidence,” she noted. “Through the Company Programme, students do not simply learn about entrepreneurship, they experience it, creating their own business from scratch and developing life skills such as teamwork, creativity and problem-solving. Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus’ continued support enables us to reach even more young people across Cyprus, giving them the opportunity to explore their potential and shape their future.”

The partnership builds on the joint work of the two organisations, which, during the previous academic year, included the Company Programme Kick-Off Workshop, where more than 400 students had the opportunity to hear practical advice from Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus executives from different areas of the company, who shared their experiences with the students and answered their questions.

A strong track record: #YouthEmpowered in Cyprus and beyond

Since the launch of #YouthEmpowered in 2017, Coca-Cola HBC Cyprus has supported more than 5,800 young people with career guidance and their transition into the world of work.

This local impact forms part of the wider success of #YouthEmpowered across Coca-Cola HBC’s markets in Europe and Africa, where the programme has supported almost 1.3 million young people. Building on this progress, Coca-Cola HBC has renewed its commitment through Mission Refresh, with the ambition of supporting more than three million young people by 2035.