22.06.2023
The Famagusta Chamber of Commerce and Industry expresses strong dissatisfaction with the ongoing discriminatory negative attitude towards the Famagusta Free Area, noting that restrictions on the construction of sustainable hotel complexes in the area make it impossible to provide significant benefits to local residents and, therefore, the local economy as a whole.
In a statement, EBE Famagusta explains that such decisions not only create obstacles for the development of Famagusta i , but also create deterrent factors for attracting any future investment. “ Free Famagusta has given our country the most in the past 49 years, so it is important and fair that the lives of its inhabitants develop evenly and at the same pace as in other areas,” the statement said.
Commenting on the recent cancellation by the Council of Ministers of the decision of the previous government to legalize an additional floor in the first hotel complex of Sotiras “Sun City Spa Resort and Residences” and the request to the Municipality of Sotiras to return the 410,000 euros paid as compensation for the implementation of environmental projects in the area, the Chamber emphasizes that since this decision and the problems that have arisen in the coastal area of the municipality of Sotiras-Liopetriou set limits in terms of the development of the area.
“The state, based on the characteristics of the Famagusta region, 85% of which is under Turkish occupation, should provide incentives to create conditions and appropriate infrastructure for further development and investment in the area, such as urban development incentives to create special zones for foreign and local enterprises (for example, the creation of a special “Business Zone”) to make the area independent of tourism. “Cooperation and support from the state is also important to attract new investments in various sectors, including healthcare, education, the transfer of company headquarters to the region, the development of a green economy and high technologies.”
According to EBE Famagusta, it is necessary to find solutions to the problems arising from the development of the Famagusta area. The Chamber of Famagusta supports actions and will take initiatives aimed at the sustainable development of the area.
