The veterinary services have announced that Є75,000 will be made available to the stray cat sterilisation programme, calling on vets and animal NGOs to sign up.

Cyprus’ staggering stray cat population has long troubled animal welfare activists who fear for their wellbeing.

In an announcement on Monday, the agriculture ministry said that the funds will be evenly split amongst the districts and professionals who wish to participate are asked to submit their application to their district veterinary office by 30/4/2021.

Government funding has been made available to the programme for the past five years, after having ceased completely during the financial crisis post 2013.

In February, the Animal Party called on the government to make more funds available as only about 2,000 cats are spayed and neutered annually.

To put that into perspective, it was claimed back in 2017 that there are more cats than humans in Cyprus – with an unofficial figure placing the number as high as 1.5 million cats present on the island.

Cat shelters and feeding stations have popped up across the island, but such care is almost exclusively provided for by non-profit NGOs and animal lovers.