In 2021, the hospitality and food services sector made the second-largest contribution to both the economy and employment at the member state level in Cyprus, according to data released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the EU.

Specifically, activities in accommodation and food services had the highest contribution to the added value of the business economy in Greece (6.5% of the country's business economy added value), followed by Cyprus with 6.0%, and Croatia with 5.4%.

The lowest shares were recorded in Slovakia (0.8%), the Czech Republic (1%), and both Poland and the Netherlands (1.2% each).

In terms of employment, the sector's contribution to the business economy was higher across all member states. Greece recorded the highest share (19.6% of the country's employment), followed by Cyprus (13.5%), and Spain (9.5%).

The lowest shares in employment were in Poland (2.8%), Slovakia (3.3%), and Finland (3.9%).

In total, in the European Union in 2021, there were 1.9 million businesses in the accommodation and food services sector, accounting for 6.1% of all businesses operating in the business economy.

The sector employed a total of 9.9 million people, generated 203.6 billion euros in added value, and accumulated a net turnover of 446.0 billion euros in 2021.

Therefore, at the EU level, the sector contributed 6.3% to the employment of the business economy in 2021 and represented 2.2% of its added value.