Municipalities have made clear they will not implement the “pay as you throw” waste management programme unless their conditions are met, whilst simultaneously demanding state funding of €179 million annually.
Speaking at the Union of Municipalities General Assembly, union president Andreas Vyras stated that if outstanding issues raised in dialogue with the government are not resolved or given clear answers that satisfy municipalities’ positions, he will not support implementation of the scheme.
Outstanding issues
Vyras said the main issues for which clear answers have not been given from official sources are:
- Organic waste infrastructure – site selection and processing costs
- Equipment and programme funding
- Tender announcements for joint equipment procurement
- Inspector recruitment – green points cost coverage
- Packaging waste collective system licensing
Funding demands
Regarding state grants to municipalities, Vyras said funding must rise to €170 million from the current €117 million.
He noted that according to a techno-economic study by Grant Thornton for the Union of Municipalities, the €117 million agreed upon in 2019 corresponds to a significantly lower real value compared to previous years.
Using a composite calculation based on annual changes, the inflation adjustment coefficient reaches 18.4%, Vyras said, adding that the amounts from other Union of Municipalities requests will be added to the new figure, calculated at around €139 million.
The final amount, calculated at around €170 million, will be expressed as a percentage of the state budget, he noted.
He also pointed out that the government grant percentage to municipalities is noticeably lower than European practices and, according to municipalities’ own calculations, is limited to 1.45% of the 2025 state budget.
Corresponding percentages in other European countries include Sweden at 15%-20%, Denmark 30%, Finland 20%-25%, Spain 13%-15%, France 4%-5% and Greece 2.5%-3%.
Smart Cities project
Regarding the Smart Cities project, funded by the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy with €35 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility and to be implemented by June 2026, Vyras said it includes the following actions:
- Contract award to Cyta (through a tendered competition) for implementing the Smart Cyprus national platform and three vertical solutions for smart parking, smart waste management and citizen application (€13 million).
- Direct contract award to EAC for installation and maintenance of 26,000 smart lights in all municipalities.
- Compensation for municipalities that have already proceeded with smart city initiatives on their own (€7 million).
Legislative gaps
Regarding pending legislative amendments, the Union of Municipalities president observed that gaps continue to exist in reform legislation.
Sending messages in various directions, he expressed respect for the deputy mayor institution and added that the union categorically rejects any attempt to downgrade the deputy mayor institution, an institution created by government proposal and legislative approval.
Undermining the existence of a democratically elected institution subverts both the democratic nature of the entire local government institution and the administrative independence of municipalities, he said.
He noted that the local government reform, with all its weaknesses, represents a necessary step towards a new era for local democracy in Cyprus.
However, he acknowledged that in practice, the new system does not adequately ensure the administrative and financial independence of municipalities, which is a basic requirement of the reform.
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