In recent years, efforts have been made to upgrade and further develop the maritime industry of Cyprus.
When the Deputy Ministry of Shipping begun its operation, 168 companies were registered under the Cyprus tonnage tax system while today it has risen up to 191 companies in total.
The Deputy Minister of Shipping, Ms. Natasa Pilides stated that attempts are being made to simplify the procedures and modernize legislation so as to make Cyprus more competitive as a Register and as a maritime cluster. She also highlighted that attempts are being made to digitalize and modernize the Cyprus systems in order to make the Cyprus Registry even more attractive.
The budget of the Deputy Ministry for the year 2019 is 9.8 million euro compared to 8.1 million euros for the year 2018, i.e. an increase of 1.7 million euros. This is due to the large increase in the budget expenditure growth which is mainly because of the commercial shipping promotion and development activities.
The Deputy Ministry’s revenue for the year 2018 is estimated around 12 million euro while the indirect incomes of the maritime industry is estimated at 800 million euros which amounts to 7% of the GDP of the island. According to Ms. Pilidou, there are currently around 1100 seagoing ships and 600-700 small vessels under the Cypriot flag.
Based on these facts it is evident that the maritime industry of Cyprus is gradually evolving. The shipping fleet of Cyprus is the 10th largest worldwide and has 25% of the whole EU fleet. By continuously updating its services and striving for perfection in the field of shipping it will not be a surprise if Cyprus conquers the top in the near future.