NICOSIA, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- Cyprus' President Nicos Anastasiades announced a reshuffle of his government on Sunday, with the most notable change being the departure of Finance Minister Harris Georgiades.
In all, five ministries were affected by the changes brought about by the reshuffle, which was expected for some time, because of the announced intention of Georgiades to leave his post before the end of this year.
Four ministers and two other officials will move to other posts and one minister and one commissioner will leave the government altogether as of Tuesday, an official statement said.
As new Minister of Finance was appointed Constantinos Petrides, who was moved from the Ministry of Interior Affairs.
Georgiades, who held the post for six years and eight months, was generally credited for leading the Cypriot economy from its 2013 tatters to a robust recovery through a steady growth.
He was strongly criticized at the start of this year for the sale to a private bank of the collapsing government-owned Cyprus Cooperative Bank, which sounded the end of local cooperative credit societies that had been established in the span of a century in every community.
Three people will join the government for the first time.
Governing DISY party deputy Nicos Nouris will take up the post of Interior Minister, while up to now government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou will move to the Ministry of Education and Culture.
His post will be filled by an outsider, lawyer Kyriakos Kousios.
Up to now mayor of Ayia Napa tourist resort Yiannis Karousos will replace outgoing Minister of Transport, Communication and Works Vassiliki Anastasiadou, one of the two who will leave the government.
The other one is Ioanna Panayiotou, Commissioner for the Environment, who will be replaced by former deputy government spokesman Clelia Vasiliou.
Outgoing Education Minister Costas Hambiaouris is to take up the post of Commissioner for the Development of Mountain Communities.
