Classes got underway at the Paphos branch of the Cyprus University of Technology (Tepak) on Monday with 300 students enrolled, inspiring praise from the coastal city’s mayor.

Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos hailed the modern higher education facilities, with final costs estimated at €20 million, as he said the university expects a future enrolment of 1,000 students in total.

He further said that the development marks a crucial point for the city and Cyprus as a whole, thanking everyone involved for making the project a success within just 13 months.

Phedonas explained that the municipality is hard at work to get the 203-bedroom student accommodation for those attending classes completed, with a price tag of €13m. He said that construction is set to begin before the end of the year.

The Tepak School of Tourism Management, Hospitality, and Entrepreneurship is joined in Paphos by a branch of the American University of Beirut.

For its part, the university in May said it was seeking out flat owners in Paphos to provide student housing.