A second announcement of a grant scheme to strengthen new business activity in areas within the British Bases was approved today by the Council of Ministers following a proposal by the Minister of Energy, Trade and Industry George Papanastasiou. According to a press release by the Ministry, the scheme, which was prepared for the purposes of equal treatment of citizens of the Republic, aims to develop, support and promote entrepreneurship, placing an emphasis on specific groups, such as young people and women, who wish to be active in business in the sectors of manufacturing, services and tourism, making use of their knowledge, experience, training and talents. The grant will be up to 70% for young men and women aged 18-29 years, while for men aged 30-50 and women aged 30-55 it will be up to 60%. The grant is calculated on the cost of the eligible costs of the investment (equipment, special facilities, construction, purchase and renovation/configuration of building spaces, promotion and other expenses), wit h a maximum eligible budget per company of pound 120,000. The total budget to be allocated for the needs of the 2nd announcement of the scheme amounts to pound 500,000 and comes from the state budget. Those interested can obtain the scheme guide, which contains all the details, the list of supporting documents, as well as other required forms or documents, from the Ministry's website and, particularly, from the website of the Industry and Technology Service. It is noted that the applications/proposals from the beneficiaries will only be submitted through the electronic system of sponsorship plans of the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry, in a specific period of time that will be determined in the relevant call for proposals, which will be announced in the next period. For more information, those interested can contact the relevant officials at 22867178/156/317/109/194. Source: Cyprus News Agency