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1. Governance

2. Cross-sectorial cooperation

Governance

The Deputy Ministry of Culture is the top-level authority for policies related to culture and cultural heritage. The Deputy Ministry was established according to the decision of the Council of Ministers (Aπόφαση για τη δημιουργία Υφυπουργείου Πολιτισμού) in 2020 and under the Law Ν. 55(Ι)/2022 (Ο περί της Ίδρυσης Υφυπουργείου Πολιτισμού, το Διορισμό Υφυπουργού Πολιτισμού παρά τω Προέδρω και Συναφών Θεμάτων Νόμος του 2022 (Ν. 55(I)/2022) that was adopted by the House of Representatives.

It consists of the following 3 departments: the Department of Contemporary Culture, the Antiquities department and the Cypriot Handicraft Service. As of January 2026, the State Archives is also managed by the Deputy Ministry of Culture.

The primary objectives of the Deputy Ministry, are the following:

• Strengthening and Professional Empowerment of Workers in the Cultural Industry.

• Establishment of a Strong Network of Strategic Partners.

• Enhancement of Internationalization through Development and Strengthening of International Collaborations.

• Encouragement of the Establishment of European Networks in Cyprus.

• Leveraging Cyprus’ Strategic Geographic Position.

The Deputy Ministry is also a member of the Cross-Sectoral Working Group of the Youth Board of Cyprus (YBC) focusing on youth related issues. Therefore, regarding the policies affecting young people’s participation and involvement in culture, the YBCs’ structures and mechanisms are involved. More information on how policies for youth are decided can be found on the Youth Wiki’s Chapter 1 in sections 1.4 Youth Policy Decision-making and 1.5 Cross-sectoral approach with other ministries.

At the same time, policies taken at the national level are enforced centrally since the responsibility of decision-making is under the central government and not the local authorities. The local authorities oversee the implementation of programmes through funding they receive from the government. Moreover, youth NGO’s, such as the Cyprus Youth Clubs Organisation (Κυπριακός Οργανισμός Κέντρων Νεότητας) are also funded to organise cultural events locally in rural and urban areas.

Also, there are some non-public actors, such us the Cyprus Architectural Heritage Organisation and the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, which aim to promote and highlight the island's cultural heritage, both internally and abroad.

The Cyprus Academy of Sciences, Letters and Arts (Κυπριακή Ακαδημία Επιστημών, Γραμμάτων και Τεχνών) founded in 2017, is the uppermost spiritual institution of Cyprus. Its goal, among others, is the promotion ad cultivation of science, letters and arts within Cyprus and globally.

Cross-sectorial cooperation

Under the ‘National Youth Strategy 2017-2022’ and the upcoming ‘National Youth Strategy 2030’, a new cross-sectorial partnership is being developed especially on culture and creativity-related policies for youth (refer also in section 1.5 Cross-sectoral approach with other ministries of Chapter 1 ‘Youth Policy Governance’).