For 10 years, the DISY government has been both insensitive and unresponsive to small and medium-sized enterprises (SME’s). This must be taken into account because the role of each government is very decisive for the course of events and for the small and medium-sized enterprise which is the backbone of the Cyprus economy and, by extension, of society.
This was stressed by the General Secretary of AKEL following a meeting between a Party delegation and the leadership of the Pancyprian union of small shopkeepers (POVEK) at its offices.
AKEL’s interest in small and medium-sized enterprises has been and continues to be continuous, Stefanos Stefanou noted, because “without a robust SME we cannot have a robust economy and even more so to have social cohesion because there are tens of thousands of households that are supported by these enterprises”.
Underlining the very difficult time for SME’s, the General Secretary of AKEL noted that the situation is worsening “on the one hand due to the price of basic materials and essential goods, mainly in the energy sector, which is particularly aggravating the already difficult economic situation for a large number of SME’s. On the other hand, this situation is made even more difficult by the specific policies pursued for 10 years by the DISY government against SME’s. The policies of the banks that were encouraged by decisions of the government and a number of other decisions of the government that also had and still seek to serve big interests and big capital at the expense of SME’s.”
As the General Secretary of AKEL mentioned, they discussed with the leadership of POVEK a number of general and specific issues and demands related to SME’s. “There is a convergence of views,” he said and assured that AKEL will continue to strive, both inside and outside Parliament, so as to help SME’s, but the decisive role played by each government in the course of events must be taken into account.