The health insurance organisation will limit the number of referrals by personal doctors as part of efforts to promote primary health care, it emerged on Thursday.

Provided there are signs of the coronavirus pandemic relenting in the near future, in turn giving rise to an uptick in air travel, the deputy ministry of tourism plans to roll out an online advertising blitz for Cyprus in early 2021, capturing as many eyeballs ahead of the next summer season.

Minister of Education Prodromos Prodromou gave on Thursday a press conference in which he gave detailed information about the government`s additional measures announced on Wednesday to minimise the spread of the coronavirus in the districts of Limassol and Paphos, which will also affect education.

Alongside the tough restriction measures that came into effect on Thursday, additional support schemes were announced by the ministers of finance and labour in a bid to cushion the inevitable economic blow.

President Nicos Anastasiades on Thursday expressed the hope the economy can start rebounding once the coronavirus pandemic is over next year.

The EU Parliament has ratified an agreement with China to protect the names of 200 European and Chinese food specialties, including zivania, from counterfeiting with the deal likely coming into force early next year.

The coronavirus pandemic had a less severe impact on the Cyprus banking system capital adequacy in the second quarter of 2020, as banks front-loaded provisions from the beginning of the pandemic.

Limiting the contact between people and minimising the possibility of the virus spreading in a work or social setting is the main goal of the new measures announced on Wednesday evening, Cyprus Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou has said.

The Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou announced stricter measures late on Wednesday night, with restrictions to be even harsher in the Limassol and Paphos districts that have developed into the epicentres of the island’s recent pandemic flare-up.

While telcos have largely risen to the challenge of withstanding a surge in network demand during the COVID-19 pandemic, pressure to maintain infrastructure resilience and expand reach emerges as the most pressing sector challenge. This is according to EY report, Top 10 risks in telecommunications 2020, which combines EY industry insights and consumer survey data to shortlist the most urgent threats facing today’s telcos.