Newsroom
Cyprus is grappling with a severe and prolonged water shortage, a problem Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou described as decades in the making. Speaking to local television today, Panayiotou traced the issue back historically, noting that mismanagement of water resources has long contributed to the island’s current crisis.
“The drought we are facing is the worst in recent memory,” the Minister said, emphasizing that past practices, such as drawing heavily on dam reserves whenever rainfall was low, have left the country vulnerable today. She explained that if previous water reserves had been preserved, the situation would be far less critical.
To address the shortfall, the government plans to expand desalination capacity. Panayiotou outlined a series of projects, including at least three mobile desalination units already in use, two permanent facilities expected by 2029, and a total of seven units planned for completion by summer 2026. Despite these efforts, she warned that desalination can only supply about 70% of drinking water demand, with the remainder currently coming from nearly empty dams. The Minister suggested that remaining dam water should be reserved primarily for agricultural use.
Desalination is an energy-intensive process, but Panayiotou noted that integrating renewable energy into new units could help reduce costs. This comes amid a sharp drop in renewable energy output in Cyprus over the past two years, with projections for 2025 indicating a 43% decline.
The Ministry is also considering changes to water pricing. Panayiotou indicated that higher rates could serve both as a deterrent to overuse and a way to manage demand more sustainably, citing patterns of waste and excessive consumption observed in recent years.
