The Directorate General Growth, Ministry of Finance. operates, from 2020, as the second Directorate General of the Ministry of Finance, under the political supervision of the Minister of Finance
It was originally founded in 1961 as the Planning Bureau (Council of Ministers Decision Number 854 dated June 15th, 1961). With this Council Decision, a planning mechanism was formed, a Central Planning Committee and two planning sub-committees. One sub-committee was for policy issues and the other for the development budget. The Planning Bureau was the administrative arm of this mechanism.
The contribution of the Planning Bureau was decisive for the growth of the economy immediately after the independence of Cyprus. It acted as the main development and coordinating body of the Government via the preparation of Strategic Development Plans, as well as the preparation and monitoring of the implementation of the Annual Development Budget. During this period, new needs for the planning and coordination of the development programme of the country appeared, which were successfully met until the 1980s and 1990s.
The Planning Bureau has also played an important role in the development of Cyprus' relations with the European Union. He was decisive in reaching the Cyprus - EEC Customs Union Agreement in 1987 but also during the accession negotiations between Cyprus and the EU. in the period 1998-2004, where he had a leading role, both in terms of coordination and negotiation.
With the consolidation of the state budget under the Ministry of Finance, in 2008 the development responsibilities of the Planning Bureau, especially in relation to monitoring the implementation of the development policy, were limited. During the period 2008-2013 the agenda of the Office focused on the wider development planning and the management of the EU Structural Funds, as well as on other horizontal European policies (research, lifelong learning, etc.).
In 2012, in the context of the exercise of the rotating Presidency of the Council of the EU by Cyprus, the Planning Bureau staffed and had was responsible for the Secretariat of the Cyprus Presidency which, under the political guidance of the Undersecretary for European Affairs, coordinated all actions for the preparation and successful implementation of the Presidency.
In May 2013 the Council of Ministers decided (Decision No. 75,141 and dated 24 May 2013) on a new broader role and mission for the Planning Bureau. As part of the reform and redefinition of its mission and responsibilities, was renamed as Directorate General for European Programmes, Coordination and Development (DG EPCD) on November 1st 2013 (Law 127(I)/447).
In 2021 with the Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 92.168 and date 15/11/2021, the Directorate General for European Programs, Coordination and Development (DG EPSA) was renamed to Directorate General Growth (DG Growth) (Based on the Law on Renaming the Directorate General for European Programs, Coordination and Development of 2021).
The new name of Directorate General Growth, fully describes the developing purpose of its existence and is the main state body responsible for the global approach to the development issues of the Government, as well as for the formulation and promotion of a unified long-term development strategy. As a consequence, with the approval of the Budget for 2024, the consolidation of the two structures of positions that exist in DG Growth, namely the Coordination Officers and the Programming Officers, was implemented. This change was considered imperative due to the differentiation of the responsibilities of the DG Growth in general and due to the internal restructuring of the Directorates, of the two individual sections of the DG Growth (Coordination and Planning) in particular, which resulted in the assumption of matters of common responsibility and their implementation by officers from both structure groups. In addition, the updating of the content of Job Description documents will be finalized by April 2024 in order to reflect the above changes.