As one of the main actions towards making Paphos a ‘smart’ city, all local authority records in Paphos will be digitalised. According to the Mayor Phedonas Phedonos, the process is expected to be completed within the next six months.

The digitalisation centre of the municipality has been set up in the former Citizens’ Information Bureau at the town square. The centre employs eight students from Neapolis University and six unemployed graduates seeking professional experience.

Among the expected benefits of the digitalisation, Phedonos mentioned a faster turnover rate for tax exemption applicants who currently have to wait at least a week for various municipal departments to check if there are any outstanding issues.

“In the new digital age,” Phedonos said, “all this will be done at the touch of a button.”

At a later stage the municipality plans to create an application through which members of the public will be able to by themselves obtain documents required by the local authorities.