“Cyprus Covid-19 Response Plan: What lies ahead?” by Invest Cyprus

Minister of Finance of the Republic of Cyprus, Cyprus

Constantinos Petrides assumed office as Minister of Finance of the Republic of Cyprus on 3rd of December 2019. Prior to his appointment, he served as Minister of Interior (1 May 2017 - 3 December 2019) and Deputy Minister to the President of the Republic of Cyprus since (1st March 2013 – 30 April 2017). From September 2011 to February 2013 was the Director of the Office of the President of the Democratic Rally. In 2006 he was hired at the European Commission in Brussels where he worked as an economist at the Directorate General for Agriculture and the Directorate General for Competition until September 2011. During his stay at the European Commission he served as negotiator of trade liberalization agreements between the EU and third countries and also worked on issues of public aid in the field of transportations. From 2000 until 2006 he served as Senior Officer at the Association of Cyprus Banks and as representative of the Association to the European Banking Federation and the National Euro Changeover Committee. During the negotiations for Cyprus’ accession to the EU in 2000 he worked on issues of harmonization at the Directorate for EU-Cyprus relations of the Planning Bureau. He studied Economics at the University of Nottingham and then acquired an MSc in Political Economy of Transition in Europe from the London School of Economics and Political Sciences.

Chairman of the Board of Directors, Invest Cyprus

Michalis P. Michael is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency since January 2018. He has a long professional career in business and audit services, both as a sole practitioner and as a Partner at KPMG Cyprus. Michalis has vast experience in the Ukrainian market and he is the Chairman of the Cyprus-Ukraine Business Association from 2012 until today. Michalis has been actively involved with public life since his early career. Formerly, he served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (1996-2000), Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Organisation of Land Development (2000-2003), Member of the Committee for the Supervision and Development of Cooperative Societies (2003-2013). He was also Member of the Board of Directors of The Cyprus University of Technology (2014-2016), where he currently holds the position of Vice-President (July 2016-today). Michalis is a Chartered Certified Accountant, a Fellow member of the UK Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA) and Member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus, of which he also served as a Member of the Board of Directors.

Chief Executive Officer, Invest Cyprus

George Campanellas is the Chief Executive Officer of the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (Invest Cyprus) and the Vice President of the Cyprus Investment Funds Association (CIFA). He has nearly twenty years of professional experience in Cyprus and abroad, working with the DG Competition in Brussels and directly with the Cypriot Ministers of Health and Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism. Mr. Campanellas has been actively involved in the development of the oil & gas sector in the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone, dealing with licensing, exploration and exploitation activities, as well as promoting bilateral and multilateral cooperation at a regional level. Throughout his career, he also had an active role in drafting the regulatory framework and running the relevant licensing procedures for attracting Foreign Direct Investment in sectors of strategic importance and large-scale infrastructure projects, such as the LNG terminal at Vasilikos Energy Center, Cyprus Techno Park, EuroAsia Interconnector and the City of Dreams Mediterranean, Europe’s largest integrated casino resort and Cyprus’ largest FDI project.