Nicosia municipality spends over €11m on social integration

Over the past 12 years, Nicosia municipality has invested a total of €11 million in social inclusion programmes. mayor Constantinos Yiorkadjis said on Tuesday.

He stressed “the paramount importance of the extensive social inclusion programmes in aiding the city’s vulnerable demographics during a period fraught with significant adversities.

“Throughout the past decade, characterised by crises that rigorously tested our collective resilience, our paramount responsibility has been standing in solidarity with our fellow citizens enduring hardship,” Yiorkadjis said.

The municipality funds have been channelled into a diverse array of programmes designed “not only to address immediate needs but also to empower individuals, provide crucial guidance, and cultivate an environment conducive to the seamless reintegration of marginalised groups.”

A total of 19 programmes have been introduced, some of which are still ongoing.

Head of the Multifunctional Municipal Centre Roula Georgopoulou highlighted how these programmes have had specific impact on some people’s lives.

“Yiannis, once destitute and homeless, now spearheads the catering operations for a prominent private school in the United Kingdom,” Georgopoulou said.

“Zahra, a child raised in the centre as an asylum seeker, now holds two degrees and has returned to contribute to the organisation that embraced her during her formative years.”