Across the Divide News and Language Services

By Kyriacos Kiliaris A crashing Turkish lira, political unrest in Turkey and an increase in the trade gap, have led to a double figure inflation growth for the second year in a row in the north of the island.  The Euro-TRY exchange rate has plummeted in five years 2.32 in 2013 to an all time low on Wednesday when it reached TRY 5.11 per Euro, while inflation growth rate has reached a staggering 14.68% in 2017 as announced by the Turkish Cypriot planning organisation. Odul Muhtaroglu, the head of the public planning organisation announce the 2017 figures in a press conference last week, adding that the upside scenario for 2018 projects an inflation of 10.2%, the 2016 figure. Muhtaroglu directly linked the increase in inflation to the crumbling Turkish Lira and the trade gap. Mustafa Besim, a Turkish Cypriot economist and professor at the Eastern Mediterranean University in Famagusta, told News Across the Divide journalists, that the economy in the north...

By Kyriacos Kiliaris Technical committees on the Cyprus Problem are facing serious difficulties in carrying out their work as they encounter obstacles from the various ministries and officials who are possibly against the rapprochement policies, said Androulla Vasiliou the co-president of the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage. Vasilliou talking to ASTRA radio station with regards to the meeting of the committees with President Anastasiadis, said that this was the first to take place after three years. She commented that she found the meeting to be constructive and that the president has given instructions to the committees to forward their demands through the Greek Cypriot negotiator Andreas Mavroyiannis, and not directly through the ministries involved. At the same time, she pointed out that the committees’ functioning is hindered by budget limitations. Vasiliou also stressed that in order for the technical committees to be able to proceed with their mission, t...