Cyprus has sent its candidature for its membership of the Committees on Sustainability and on the Programme & Budget (2023-2027)

Investments to Reduce Seasonality

(Match: one of the objectives of the Cyprus Tourism Strategy is to “Support investments oriented towards reducing seasonality”.)

• Organization of Tourism Investment Forum, aiming at assisting Cyprus in attracting investments and fostering entrepreneurship.
• Green Investments in collaboration with IFC for sustainable tourism
• UNWTO & fDi intelligence from the Financial Times - UNWTO Members can have a limited access to world-class digital investment platforms at no cost   

Sustainable tourism

(Match: The plan is to become a year-round sustainable tourism destination by 2030).

• Tourism and Climate Change. UNWTO, & International Transportation Forum recommendations on the overall contribution of the tourism sector to GHG emission.
• Introduce INSTO
• UNWTO ONE Planet Platform for Sustainable Development: Global Plastic Initiative

Rural and cultural tourism

(Match: One of the guiding principles - is to give great importance to local heritage, cultural expressions, and natural environment).

• Explore the possibility of organizing joint regional initiatives, in cooperation with FAO
• Cultural route: Phoenicians' Route
• Cyprus has submitted 3 applications for the Best Tourism Villages 2021
  • “Pano Lefkara” was chosen as the Best Tourism Village while “Agros” was assigned to the Upgrade Programme

Develop a Diversified Offer

(Match:Both the vision statement and the guiding principles of tourism strategy prioritize the development of an offer for certain Special Interest niches and diversified offer in general.)

• Segments of interest: Support Cyprus in the enhancement of its tourism segments of interest through capacity building activities and exchange of best practices with other destinations. 
• Coastal/Maritime tourism: Possible collaboration in UNWTO-Greece Monitoring and Research Center for Coastal and Maritime Tourism.

Cyprus Tourism Strategy 2030

Mission

• Offer the world memorable tourism experiences and improve the quality of life of the Cypriots
  
  (Offering memorable experiences for the international tourists; Ensuring that tourism will improve the quality of life of the local population while preserving their local identities and inspiring greater confidence in their future)

Vision

• Become, before 2030, a year-round sustainable destination receiving 4,8 million international tourists (40% of whom during November-April)
• The Stretch Goal: Be among the top 5 year-around tourist destinations in the Mediterranean
  Additional Goal to the stretch goal:
  
  1. Competitive, profitable, and sustainable; 2. With a diversified offer; 3. Operational all year-round; 4. With sufficient air connectivity; 5. Able to contribute to 28% of GDP

Guiding Principles

• Make Cyprus a “Premium”  all year-round holiday destination
• Give great importance to local heritage, cultural expressions, and natural environment
• Develop an excellent offer for certain Special Interest niches
• Support investment oriented towards reducing seasonality
• Expand formulas to optimize tourism’s multiplier effect on the local economy.

Source: www.mcit.gov.cy