The perceptive ideas about education have been modified over the last decades; the latter attributed to various rapid changes that marked the face of our planet. Some of these may be the impressive knowledge "boom", the technological advancement, social changes, and the universalization of economy and culture. The new perceptions and needs orient and shape the framework, in which the individual continually seeks the skills and their ongoing renewal through a lifelong education. Eventually, the individual becomes participant and recipient of those changes avoiding becoming rearguard.

Various programs operate along these lines aiming to make it easier for the individuals to adopt the new situation. They even enable individuals to acquire the knowledge and skills over matters of professional training and to successively increase their productivity, develop new professional activities, reinforce and strength their struggle for a cultural identity, mutual comprehension and social activation. They even aid the individual to develop a spirit of voluntarism and gain maturity, thus becoming fully aware of everything that takes place around him/her and participating successfully as a citizen of the Republic of Cyprus.

A large number of people embraced those programs. Quite indicative of the event is the fact that in 1996-97 108,091 individuals attended through one channel or another various programs of formal education. From this amount of people, 55,765 were females and 52,326 males respectively. In 1990-91 the total number of enrolments was 89,294.

Table 4 shows the exact amount of registrations per educational institution, the top academic qualification of those individuals, etc.

The latter operate in urban as well as in rural areas, offering a wide range of programs such as the preparation for the acquisition of recognised certificates in Foreign Languages, preparation of high school graduates to gain entrance to the University of Cyprus and the Universities of Greece, Modern Greek for foreigners and, finally, introductory Computer Science programs.

During the school year 1990-91, a total number of 5,496 individuals from all educational levels attended various subjects at the State Institutes of Further Education, out of whom 3,065 were females and 2,431 males respectively, whereas in the school year 1996-97 this figure increased spectacularly reaching 10,998 individuals out of whom, 6,155 were females and 4,843 males respectively.

This operates as a semi-governmental organization charged with the task of conducting research, tracing needs and problems that exist in industry and the workforce. The authority sponsors programs and covers a wide range of activities relevant to the needs of the participants. The basic target of those programmes is the renewal of knowledge and skills and the acquisition of new knowledge leading to an increase in productivity.

The following statistical table that shows the programs offered by the Industrial training authority during 1996 shows the number of series for each program as well as the number of trainees per absolute figures.

ITA = Industrial Training Authority

= Mediterranean Institute of Management

It has been thereupon observed that eleven educational programs had been offered to 29,741 trainees, of whom 9,919 were women and 19,822 men respectively.

The Cyprus Productivity Centre (CPC) was established in 1963 by the Cyprus Government, with assistance from the United Nations Development Program and the International Labour Office; the relevant cooperation agreement expired on 30^th November, 1974, and the Government has since taken over completely the operation of the Centre.

Administratively, the CPC is a Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance. Its activities, however, are monitored by a tripartite Board of Directors.

The Centre’s original long-term objective "to assist private and public organizations to utilize their human and capital resources in the best possible manner, with a view to increasing their productivity", still remains valid today.

However, it has now been modified to be in line with the national goals for economic growth and development and expanded to include the needs of the Cyprus Civil Service, as well as those of other developing countries.

The apprenticeship scheme for students of the ages 16-18 that operates in Technical High Schools facilitates a part time attendance in theoretical subjects alongside practical training in various vocational fields enabling, therefore, the participants to obtain a steady income. Afternoon and evening three – year programmes operate for interested adults preparing the latter in technical vocations and granting them the relevant diploma.

During the school year of 1989-90, 759 students attended the apprenticeship scheme in Cyprus, whilst in the school year of 1996-97, this figure increased slightly, reaching a total number of 764 participants.

It is worth noting that during the school year of 1989-90, 530 individuals attended the afternoon / evening Technical classes, whilst in the school year of 1996-97, this figure increased significantly, reaching a total of 802 participants.

The Cyprus Academy of Public Administration (CAPA) is part of the Ministry of Finance. It was created in 1991 by a decision of the Council of Ministers on the basis of recommendations made by experts from the European Institute of Public Administration in Maastricht following consultations with representatives of the Cyprus government, the civil service and the civil servants’ trade union.

Its main aim is to contribute to the efficiency and effectiveness of the civil service through the development of the management capabilities of civil service departments.

In order to achieve this aim CAPA has undertaken activities in the following fields:

• Management training and development
• The development of training and learning in departments
• The management of change in relation to the introduction of information technology
• European Union issues.

Since July 1996, in view of Cyprus’s efforts to join the EU and following a decision by the Council of Ministers, CAPA has focused its activities on European Union issues. Its training and development programmes, in this regard, concentrated on four main aspects:

• the institutions, decision-making processes and policies of the EU
• the relationship between Cyprus and the EU
• the roles and responsibilities of national civil services in the EU context, with inevitable emphasis on the Cyprus civil service
• the organizational and managerial implications of the EU challenge for the Cyprus civil service.

Methodologically. CAPA emphasizes participative techniques in its training programmes and encourages work-based follow up projects combining job-related problem solving with learning.

Since its inception CAPA has forged links with a number of educational and training institutions at home and abroad such as the University of Cyprus, the National Centre of Public Administration of Greece, the Civil Service College in the UK, the Institute for Development, Policy and Management of the University of Manchester and the European Institute of Public Administration at Maastricht.

In addition to promoting the development of the Cyprus civil service, which is its paramount aim, CAPA also contributes to efforts at improving other civil services (e.g. that of the Palestinian Authority) in the context of schemes of technical assistance offered by the Cyprus government.

A subject index is offered by the Cyprus Academy of Public Administration showing clearly the number of students and teaching staff with a male/female distribution ratio respectively.

In our era, education has clearly become a lifelong process, with people learning at any age and at any places as needs and opportunities arise. The individual finds himself learning within the family. The education continues through formal education, pre-primary, primary, secondary and higher education. It is not, uncommon, however for many individuals to continue their education through non-formal education processes in the way described in previous chapters.

The very society, itself, becomes a process from which an individual seeks knowledge and information from such sectors as the political parties, organizations, municipal and community associations and mass media. The afore mentioned sectors help the individual to live harmoniously and constructively in a state of co-operation with fellow human beings and setting the base for better living.

Self-realization and self-respect, the definition of an individual’s role in society and other sectors (political parties, associations and organizations) the awareness of cultural traditions, the sensitivity of an individual in the face of deplorable problems are some of the problems that the individual is asked to confront through democratic procedures in order to achieve higher standards of living.

Mass media plays an important role towards better living. Radio and television have the capacity to convey messages to the public. Mass media in close co-operation and association with the Primary Education Department of the Ministry of Education and Culture produce programs of education and recreational content addressed to children of pre-primary and primary school.

Those programs can be shown in the classroom for instruction purposes but at the same time they are informative and educational for every citizen. Various other documentaries which are quite enlightening are flora and fauna, environmental pollution, as well as lectures of educational content, panel discussions on current matters (political, economic and social) aim on eliminating rural area abandonment, safeguarding rural interests, constituting the framework in which educational programs of radio and TV are concerned. The Cypriot press (newspapers and magazines) publish articles of educational content which are directly relevant to the educational problems of the island such as topics on anti-social behaviour, school effectiveness, preparation for the exams for entrance to the universities of Greece and Cyprus, etc.

• Educational articles that enlighten the reader about education and social, political and cultural life of the island.
• Articles that inform the citizen about environment and other crucial issues.

The democratic procedures that characterize the whole spectrum of activities in Cyprus aided the political parties and organizations to accept the equality of sexes, something that was not common in the past. Secondly, such measures were taken by the parties in order to allow harmonization of their constitutions allowing thus not only equal representation for women but taking such measures in order for the latter to reach successfully top positions in their parties.

It is not at all incidental that organizations such as the Consumers Association, the Environmental Movement, etc inform their customers about the suitability of food and the catastrophy and devastation of the environment, respectively. They even take the initiative to thoroughly protest and exercise pressure on the government or the private entrepreneurs ensuring the rights of the people and the environment.

Far beyond the afore mentioned programmes, some others like Municipalities and communities, associations and organizations, the Church, the Police, the Cyprus Association of Parents, the open university and some mass media, even, undertake such activities as folklore festivals, cultural and charity events, care for the elderly, special programmes for the confrontation of anti-social behaviour, care for individuals with special needs, intellectual activities among the youth, development of Christian moral and philosophy, exchange programmes among the youth of Cyprus and other European countries, special supportive programs for the protection of family values, and finally, programmes that lead to better and healthier social upbringing.

Most of the afore-mentioned programs have drastically changed the mentality of the Cypriot Public. It has become more sensitive, and if nothing else, a consumer and environmental awareness has been widely accepted, becoming thus easier for the individual to fight for a better standard of living and a much healthier environment.

(Eleni)                                                                                                                 END