2024: A Pivotal Year For Tourism And Economic Growth In Cyprus

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

December 2, 2024

Deputy Minister for Tourism, Kostas Koumis, has described 2024 as a milestone year for Cyprus’s tourism sector, highlighting record-breaking achievements in visitor arrivals and revenue. His remarks, delivered on Friday, follow the release of impressive figures by the Statistical Service.

Tourism Reaches New Heights

Koumis expressed satisfaction with the sector’s recovery, noting that arrivals and revenue have returned to, and even exceeded pre-pandemic levels. According to the Deputy Ministry, revenue from January to September 2024 rose by 31.1% compared to 2022 and 15.3% compared to 2019. Arrivals for the January–October period increased by 4.6% from 2023, and 26.7% from 2022, and even surpassed 2019’s figures by 0.8%.

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Additionally, Koumis pointed out that per capita expenditure remains steady, reflecting sustained economic benefits from tourism. Looking ahead to 2025, the ministry’s strategy prioritises investment in rural tourism, environmental preservation, and community-driven benefits.

Resilient Sector and Strategic Success

The Deputy Ministry credited the robust performance to effective market-targeting decisions and the resilience of the tourism sector. Koumis emphasised that Cyprus’s approach to diversifying its tourism offerings and focusing on quality experiences has yielded significant results.

Economic Highlights: Fiscal Surplus and Revenue Growth

Cyprus’s broader economic performance in 2024 also stands out. Preliminary data from the Statistical Service reveals a surplus of €1.43 billion (4.2% of GDP) for January–October, up from €664.8 million (2.1% of GDP) during the same period in 2023.

Revenue Growth

Total Revenue: Increased by 6.6%, reaching €11.69 billion.
Taxes on Production and Imports: Grew by 6.2%, with net VAT revenue rising 7.6%.
Income and Wealth Taxes: Surged by 16%, amounting to €2.9 billion.
Revenue from Goods and Services: Jumped by 29.9%, reaching €822.7 million.

While some areas, such as social benefits and employee compensation, saw increases, the overall fiscal picture remains positive, driven by disciplined spending and strong revenue growth.

Looking Forward

With record-breaking tourism figures and a strong fiscal position, Cyprus is well-positioned for sustainable economic growth. Investments in rural development, community benefits, and environmental sustainability ensure that both the tourism sector and the wider economy will continue to thrive in the years ahead.

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Cyprus Unveils Enhanced National Supercomputer Amid Pioneering AI Initiative

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

June 5, 2026

Cyprus Launches Upgraded National Supercomputer

Cyprus is set to launch its upgraded national supercomputer this June as part of the Pharos-CY initiative, expanding the country’s high-performance computing and artificial intelligence capabilities. Developed in collaboration with NVIDIA, the system will support research, data processing and AI-related applications.

Strategic Partnership With NVIDIA

NVIDIA is providing technical expertise, training and support as part of the project. Preparatory training sessions and technical consultations have been conducted ahead of the launch, with the infrastructure designed to support artificial intelligence applications, big data analytics and advanced simulations.

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Infrastructure And Collaborative Ecosystem

Hosted at the Cyprus Institute, the upgraded system builds on existing high-performance computing infrastructure already used for scientific research. Additional computing capacity will be available to universities, government departments, research organisations and private-sector users. Projects in healthcare, energy, environmental management, maritime operations, crisis response, digital governance and economic development are expected to benefit from the platform.

Pharos-CY And The AI Ecosystem

Alongside the supercomputer, the Pharos-CY initiative aims to expand access to AI infrastructure and computing resources in Cyprus. Operating as the country’s AI Factory Antenna, the project will provide infrastructure, data resources and technical tools to research institutions, businesses and public-sector organisations. Funding is provided by the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and the Republic of Cyprus through the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy. Coordination is led by CaSToRC at the Cyprus Institute.

High-Level Inauguration And Industry Engagement

The new AI and supercomputing infrastructure is scheduled to be unveiled at the Presidential Palace on Friday. Among the speakers are Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy Nikodimos Damianou and Deputy Minister to the President Eirini Piki. NVIDIA Vice President of Sales and Business Development for HPC Yiannis Iosefakis is expected to deliver a keynote presentation titled “Cyprus–NVIDIA: From Collaboration to Implementation.”

Broader Implications For Cyprus’s Technology Strategy

Additional presentations will focus on technology initiatives and infrastructure projects, featuring Cyprus Institute Professor Konstantinos Dovrolis, Coordinator of Pharos-CY, and Georgios Tsouloupas, Head of Supercomputing and Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure at the Cyprus Institute. Proceedings will conclude with a panel discussion on the role of AI and high-performance computing in research, innovation and economic development, bringing together representatives from government, academia, NVIDIA and the technology sector.

Recent engagements with technology companies, including Amazon, Google, Oracle, Plug and Play and Tenstorrent, form part of broader efforts to attract investment and expand Cyprus’s technology ecosystem.

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