The Cypriot government honoured businessman John Christodoulou for his charitable work and for his efforts to promote Cyprus abroad during a ceremony in London within the framework of the World Travel Market conference.

According to a press release by the Yianis Christodoulou Foundation, the recent organisation of the Pan-Cyprian competition ‘Love Cyprus,’ addressed to Primary Schools, General Secondary Education, and Technical Secondary Education, offering youth the opportunity to discover authentic Cyprus through tradition, culture, dances, and music, constitutes the main reason for the award.

The competition saw almost 200 schools from all over Cyprus send in over 600 projects, exceeding expectations, and seeing the total prize amount increase to €180,000.

Through this initiative, tourism awareness was also enhanced in schools, highlighting the decisive role of tourism on our island, the Foundation notes. Additionally, financial support to the schools that excelled in the competition was provided, enabling them to cover the significant needs of the school units.

The award was presented by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Kostas Koumis. “The Deputy Ministry of Tourism expresses its warm thanks for Mr Christodoulou’s dedication and contribution to Cyprus and declares its readiness to support the future work of the Foundation, with the aim of enhancing tourism awareness and further promoting our island,” Koumis said.

“We must educate our children so that they can understand our traditions, the history of Cyprus, and the special island where we come from. We need our kids to understand the pain and sorrow we had during the Turkish invasion and how we suffered. This cannot be forgotten, this needs to be explained. We cannot forget and we all have to remember where we come from. If we forget our roots we will forget our destination,” Christodoulou responded.