Introduction
Cyprus is situated in the eastern Mediterranean, lying at the hub of 3 continents. Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean after Sicily and Sardinia. The island’s time zone is 7 hours ahead of New York and 7 hours behind Tokyo.
Cyprus’ estimated population is 793,100 (population census 2001) of which 80,7 percent belongs to the Greek Cypriot community (including Armenians, Maronites and Latins), and 11 percent to the Turkish Cypriot community, whilst the remaining 8,3 percent are foreign residents. Greek and Turkish are the official languages of the Republic but English is widely spoken and understood, and is regularly used in commerce and government.
The structure of government is similar to that in other western democracies where human rights, political pluralism and private property are safeguarded.
Since the 1st May 2004, Cyprus has become a European Union Member State.
Cyprus has an open free market economy. Per capita GNP is estimated at CYP 10.033 in 2005 (EUR 17.256) which compares favourably with the EU average. The economy is driven by thriving tourist and service sectors and an export-oriented industry. About 80 percent of Cyprus’ gross foreign exchange earnings are derived from tourism, the export of goods, transportation and international business and shipping companies.