The Stelios Award for Business Cooperation in Cyprus was formally launched in Nicosia on Monday night, at an entrepreneurial event involving "some bi-communal business networking" hosted by British High Commissioner Peter Millett.

Around 120 Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot small business owners attended the event, responding to the chance to meet a future business collaborator - and maybe win €50,000 in cash from "serial entrepreneur" Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou in the process.

Also attending were Presidential Commissioner George Iacovou, Cyprus Chambers of Commerce and Industry (KEVE) President Manthos Mavromatis, representatives from the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce and a number of bi-communal groups.

Haji-Ioannou – who prefers to be known as Stelios – announced the creation of the Stelios Award for Business Cooperation in Cyprus some three months ago, and has pledged to give away up to €1 million of his own money over the next four years to business people from the north and south of the island who co-operate on new ventures.

Up to five winning teams per year will each be presented a personal cheque for €50,000 per team by Haji-Ioannou himself in a ceremony in Nicosia at the end of 2009, and each year thereafter for up to four years, depending on the calibre of applicants. The award scheme is being run by the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation.

Mavromatis said that KEVE had advised the Foundation to target business sectors where there was already evidence of co-operation across the Green Line and good potential for more, such as IT services, or commercial sectors dealing in plastics or building materials.

He said: "Of course this is a very positive initiative, and we encourage Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot business people – especially the younger ones – to set up joint ventures and apply for funding."

"My only advice to them would be to make sure that their business proposals are doable, rather than being nice ideas on paper but practically unfeasible. If they take into account today’s business realities, then they will stand a good chance of winning the prize, which is not an insignificant amount."

Iacovou said that the government had always supported the kind of co-operation embodied by Stelios' "noteworthy endeavour", adding that "we will help Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot business people to co-operate with every means at our disposal. This is desirable in any case, independently of the award scheme."

Haji-Ioannou addressed those attending via a video message, saying that his ambition is to get the people of Cyprus to work together on a business level, which will help build communication and understanding between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.

Millett said that it is very important to "bring businesses together and highlight the economic advantages of reunification. It is so crucial to building confidence and building trust between the two communities – it underpins the whole solution. To use a Stelios phrase, it’s an easy solution."