According to an official announcement, "at the meeting, the Cypriot minister first thanked his Greek counterpart for the long-term support provided by Greece, and in particular his Ministry, to the education system of Cyprus."
Mr. Kadis discussed with Mr. Filis the constant issue of the transfer of Cypriot students from a university in one city of Greece to another, as well as that of the possibility of admission to Greek higher education institutions through pan-Cypriot examinations and children of one of the two parents he is not a Cypriot but from Greece.
They also discussed the extension of the Memorandum of Cooperation between Greece and Cyprus in Education, which expires next year, when the Greek minister will visit the island to complete the agreement.
On the occasion of his appointment tomorrow, Tuesday, as an Honorary Professor of the Technical Educational Institution (TEI) of Athens, in the Department of Oenology and Beverage Technology, Mr. Kadis met today with his Greek counterpart and had lunch with the Minister of Culture and Sports, Aristides Baltas.
In his inauguration ceremony, Mr. Kadis will give a lecture on the reform program currently being prepared in Cyprus by the Ministry of Education, points of which he developed to his Greek counterpart, who then stated that Greece has much to learn from the Cypriot educational system.
Indicatively, the two ministers agreed to exchange ideas on what is happening in their countries in Education, with a view to new collaborations on them, and when Mr. Kadis referred to an effort being made in Cyprus for the computerization of schools, Mr. Filis He said that this experience is worth sharing with Greece.
The two ministers initially reviewed relations between the two ministries. They discussed the creation of a committee to monitor and update the memorandum of cooperation between Greece and Cyprus in the field of Education, which began in 2011 and ends in 2016.
The Cypriot minister invited his Greek counterpart to visit Cyprus in 2016 in order, among other things, to sign the expansion with a new memorandum of cooperation.
According to statements made by Mr. Kadis to KYPE, some individual issues were put on the table from the Cypriot side, such as the issue of transfers of Cypriot students from one Greek university to another based on socio-economic criteria.
This was and remains a constant pursuit of the Cypriot side and concerns not a few students, and especially their parents who are often called upon to shoulder the additional, and for many unprofitable cost of studying two or three more children in different cities of Greece.
Mr. Kadis insisted on this issue during his meeting with Mr. Filis, pointing out that for many families in Cyprus there is a serious financial problem that makes it difficult for them to cope with their children's education. As he stated in KYPE, "we found understanding from Mr. Filis, and the whole issue will be re-examined".
The new Minister of Education of Greece was also brought to the attention of another permanent issue facing several families in Cyprus, where one or more of their children, despite being born, raised, living permanently on the island and have Cypriot citizenship, however because one of the two parents They happen to be from Greece (mother or father, no matter who) this deprives children of the right to be admitted to Greek universities through pan-Cypriot exams.
And in this issue, said Mr. Kadis, there was interest from his Greek colleague, and a willingness to resolve it.
Also, on the occasion of the completion of 50 years of the Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus, Mr. Kadis thanked the Greek side for the continuous and stable support to Cyprus in general, and in particular to its educational system.
"Reviewing this course of half a century", the Minister of Education of Cyprus told KYPE, "one cannot ignore the important help that Greece has offered us, especially in the very difficult times for our country, both at the level of expertise as well as in logistics infrastructure, and not be grateful for it ".
Source: KYPE