Building that houses the programme given name of Georgia Polyviou
The children’s day care centre “Rainbow”, a new facility of the Nicosia Municipal Multipurpose Centre, housed in a renovated building on Eracleous Street in Nicosia within the walls, was inaugurated on Monday, October 17 in a ceremony charged with emotion, joy and hope.
An honorary plaque was also unveiled renaming the building after Georgia Polyviou, in memory of the late president of Alkionides Charity who dedicated her life to the service of those in need.
The Rainbow programme is designed for babies, infants and children and covers home care for babies and infants aged up to five, the operation of a nursery for children aged two to five as well as a child care and activities centre for youngsters aged five to twelve. The programme also encompasses the creation of the “Park of Happiness”, a green area for the recreation for children of the Rainbow initiative as well as for senior citizens taking part in programmes of the Multipurpose Centre.
Attending the opening were the deputy minister of social welfare Mrs Anastasia Anthousi, the permanent secretary of the directorate general for development Mr Theodosis Tsiolas, the head of the European Funds unit Mr Constantinos Kyprianou, members of the municipal council, the president of Alkionides Charity Mrs Eva Pantzari and of course, the husband of Georgia Polyviou, Mr Polis Polyviou, who in his address pledged his family would continue the tireless work of helping others, just as his late wife had done to the last day of her life.
The project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund, the Republic of Cyprus and Nicosia Municipality, while the generous donation from the family of Polis Polyviou and Alkionides Charity, ensure the continued viability of the centres after the co-financing period ends.
In her address, the deputy minister for social welfare Mrs Anastasia Anthousi said:
“The state supports the operation of social care programmes that cover the needs of vulnerable groups of the population through the de minimis state aid programme managed by the social welfare services of the deputy ministry of social welfare. Within this framework, the Nicosia Multipurpose Centre receives grants to operate social care programmes aimed at covering the needs for the afternoon care of children of school age, home care for the elderly, the operation of an adults’ centre and the provision of consultative services. The total grant given to the Nicosia Multipurpose Centre in 2022 is €86,000.
At the same time, the social welfare services are promoting improvements to the legislation and regulations governing the operation of nurseries and child care centres so as to offer better quality care to each child, which will meet the new challenges such as the social inclusion and integration of children with disabilities, multiculturalism and new technology.”
On his part, Nicosia Mayor Mr Constantinos Yiorkadjis thanked all those who worked for the implementation of the project, the directorate general for development, the European Funds unit, as well as the Polis Polyviou family and Alkionides and stressed that the municipality would press on with efforts to offer relief to the less privileged.
“The implementation of policies of social solidarity that aim to support all those who are in need is a key priority for Nicosia Municipality which invests considerably to this end. We are convinced that local government should implement active policies that will offer a safety net to the town’s residents, and we have to a large extent achieved this through the multiple and multi-dimensional programmes of the Municipal Multipurpose Centre,” he noted.
From the Nicosia Municipal Multipurpose Centre
17 October 2022.
