in-cyprus 3 July 2024
The Minister of Agriculture, Maria Panayiotou, announced that the Cabinet has approved the immediate hiring of 108 individuals to strengthen the staffing of the Department of Forests, including forest firefighters, operators of special vehicles, and fire guards.
Speaking after the Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Palace, Minister Panayiotou stated that the Cabinet had decided to bolster the staffing of the Department of Forests and to implement a series of measures with financial incentives to enhance fire prevention in peri-urban areas.
She noted that the Department of Forests would be reinforced with the immediate hiring of 108 individuals to meet the needs for forest firefighters, operators of special vehicles, and fire guards.
The financial incentive measures, she added, include the launch of a pilot programme for controlled grazing, the cultivation of abandoned fields, the implementation of silvicultural measures in forests and forest areas, the cutting of grass and low, unwanted shrubs along road embankments, and 100% funding for complexes of communities bordering forest areas to procure chippers.
The Minister concluded that these measures will begin to be implemented starting this month.
(information from CNA)
