Farmers affected by the foot‑and‑mouth outbreak will begin receiving an initial advance payment of €50,000 next week as compensation for animals culled during the crisis, Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou has confirmed.
Speaking on CyBC’s “Apo Mera se Mera” program, Panayiotou said the payments, based on current market prices, will help livestock producers meet their financial obligations.
She said vaccinations are expected to be completed nationwide by the end of March. So far, about 40% of goat and sheep units and 70% of cattle units have been vaccinated.
Panayiotou said roughly 25,000 cases have been identified and around 15,000 animals have been culled, adding that culling operations are continuing.
Asked about monitoring in the north, she said she has requested information from the bicommunal technical committee, noting the need to ensure that control measures are also being applied in the occupied areas.
Responding to opposition calls for her resignation, Panayiotou said ministerial resignations are always at the disposal of the president. She added that she leads a ministry with long‑standing structural problems and has been working since her first day in office to resolve issues that have gone unaddressed for decades.