Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and EC head Ursula von der Leyen inaugurated Friday a state-of-the-art Dialysis Unit at Paphos General Hospital. The President in his speech praised EU role in projects that shape citizens’ lives, noting that this is a Unit that was made possible under Cyprus Recovery and Resilience Plan, along with national funding. The Commission stands by Cyprus to make such plans a success, Ursula von der Leyen said.
President Christodoulides said that the unit, which is in operation since last year, is a very important project that will contribute decisively to the improvement of the quality of life of hundreds of citizens. It had a total cost of five million euro and as the President noted, it became a reality thanks to the European Union’s Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, in the context of Next Generation EU.
‘This is a plan put in place by the European Union to emerge stronger from the unprecedented health crisis of the coronavirus. At this point, I have to praise the decisi
on taken by the previous government to include this very important project in the Plan’, he said, adding that the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism is one of the most ambitious plans ever implemented in Europe’s history.
He said that the Dialysis Unit at Paphos hospital, is tangible proof of how important it is to join forces, how great the idea of solidarity is and how much more hopeful our future as a European Union is when it is founded on the cooperation of partners with shared values and principles to tackle common challenges and achieving common goals.
He said that the presence of European Commission Head here today sends a message that the EU is not just a vague or general idea or concept but an organisation that is becoming stronger due to the unity of its member states, able to contribute actively, substantially and decisively to the improvement of all aspects of the daily life of European citizens, and in particular in areas that touch the daily life of the Cypriot citizens.
?he European Commissi
on President said that the new dialysis unit meant ‘closer and easier access to care, and it makes a big difference for patients, especially for these dialysis patients who go through treatment several times a week, as we’ve heard twice a week or three times a week.’
‘And you can imagine what difference it makes if you save time, because care is closer to you, and this is precious lifetime. A gift of a full and healthier life,’ she added.
Von der Leyen said she was ‘glad’ that the NextGenerationEU funding scheme can contribute to this. ‘Indeed, NextGenerationEU is Europe’s massive funding programme. It supports reforms and investments like never before, all across Europe. So, here too, in Paphos’, she said, adding that the EU has invested close to pound 4 million in this new care unit.
‘It’s a concrete example of what NextGenerationEU can achieve in Cyprus’, she said. ‘And with your pound 1 billion from NextGenerationEU, there are much more success stories to be written or they are being written right now,
and the Commission continues to stand with you to make these plans a success’, von der Leyen said.
Source: Cyprus News Agency