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Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 13-02-01
CONTENTS
[01] Social benefits increase by 42% compared to 2007, Minister says
[02] US welcome agreement to restore occupied monastery
[01] Social benefits increase by 42% compared to 2007, Minister says
Minister of Labour and Social Insurances Sotiroula Charalambous has
stated that the social benefits, with the exception of the benefits of
the Social Insurance Fund, increased during this administration by 42%,
compared to 2007.
Speaking on Friday, Charalambous said that this increase does not however
indicate a waste of public money, as some had claimed. "On the contrary,
the targeted social benefits support vulnerable groups, who are facing
the risk of poverty. As a result of the policy that we have followed,
for the elderly, the percentage of poverty risk for people over the age
of 65 decreased from 46.4% in 2008 to 36.9% in 2011", she said.
The Minister said that the Plan to support pensioners with low income
was introduced in December 2009 and played a pivotal role towards this
direction.
[02] US welcome agreement to restore occupied monastery
The United States welcome the agreement signed Thursday for the
restoration of the monastery of Apostle Andreas, in the northern Turkish
occupied Karpas peninsula.
A statement issued Friday by the American embassy in Nicosia says that
"the US welcomes the agreement between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish
Cypriot communities, through the Cultural Heritage Technical Committee,
to set up and contribute to a multi-donor partnership for the restoration
of Apostolos Andreas".
According to the statement, the US has long supported efforts to protect
and preserve Cyprus` rich cultural heritage and is pleased to announce
that it also intends to contribute to the Apostolos Andreas partnership
with funds from the UNDP-Action for Cooperation and Trust program.
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