Two bicommunal companies in Cyprus receive awards for joint projects

Two companies that bring Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots together received awards from the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation this year. One specialises in making and restoring musical instruments, while the other produces furniture surfaces from olive production waste.

Michalis Pantelidis and Arif Cebeci have been making and restoring stringed musical instruments together for five years. Pantelidis opened his workshop in central Nicosia in 2005 after studying in Cremona, Italy, a city renowned for its violin-making tradition.

Michalis played the violin from childhood, but he was most drawn to working with his hands. In secondary school, he decided to learn how to make violins and went to Cremona, where he studied the traditional craft.

Arif became interested in making musical instruments thanks to the director of the music school he attended. He studied the craft in Turkey, and after returning to Cyprus began working in his home garage. Later, mutual friends introduced him to Michalis, after which they began working together.

The craftsmen make violins, violas and cellos, and also restore antique instruments. Among their best-known works is the restoration of a violin made in 1785 by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini, whose value is estimated at €4 million.

According to Michalis, antique instruments are historical works of art, so it is important to respect the work of their original makers during restoration.

Recently, the craftsmen also brought Stradivari and Guarneri violins to Cyprus. During an exhibition organised for the occasion, Cypriot musicians had the opportunity to play the rare instruments and compare their sound.

Making a violin from scratch takes around 300 hours of work. The craftsmen note that creating a high-quality instrument requires a great deal of time and attention to every detail. To ensure the workshop's financial sustainability, they also repair and restore instruments.

This year, Pantelidis and Cebeci received the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation award for the third time. They say it is important for professional expertise and craftsmanship to be regarded as a full contribution to the economy, rather than merely a hobby.

At the same time, their joint work faces practical difficulties because of the island's division. These include crossing points, bureaucratic procedures and difficulties in obtaining materials.

Arif lives in the northern part of Nicosia but crosses a crossing point every day to reach the workshop, which is only a few kilometres away. According to him, it is significantly more difficult to obtain the necessary materials and equipment in the north of the island, while the additional cost of supplies from Turkey increases expenses.

The second project is the bicommunal startup Pit2Table, which emerged through the UNDP's confidence-building measures programme.

The company uses waste from olive production and turns it into material for furniture surfaces. The idea emerged during the pandemic from Mustafa Afşaroğlu, Buğra Ebeler and Yağmur Fellahoğlu.

Later, through the programme, they met Katerina Loizou and Angelos Evangelou, who were participating with their own project. Through this collaboration, materials specialists joined the Pit2Table team, and the company began operations in 2025.

Pit2Table's products have already been presented in Copenhagen, Paris, London and New York. Initially, the surfaces were made by hand, but the team is now gradually introducing equipment and production automation.

Production is based in the northern part of the island, while raw materials are supplied by both Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot olive growers. The finished products cross the buffer zone in accordance with the rules governing trade across the buffer zone, after which they enter the market of the Republic of Cyprus and are exported abroad.

The project's creators note that this arrangement requires considerable work because of the need to coordinate with producers, government institutions and logistics companies on both sides of the island. The high cost of materials and equipment in the north remains an additional challenge.

At the same time, the project participants believe that working together enables people to get to know one another better and focus on common interests rather than political and historical differences.

Katerina Loizou and Angelos Evangelou are also developing their own project, Velo. They use waste from prickly pear — one of Cyprus's traditional fruits — to produce a material that can be used as a leather substitute in the fashion industry.

Both business ideas received awards as part of a UNDP competition. They do not currently plan to merge the companies into one, but they continue to cooperate and are considering creating a joint product that would combine the developments of both projects.