Housing is the main issue students are facing, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Monday during a visit to the Cyprus University of Technology (Tepak) in Limassol.
The president visited Tepak, accompanied by Justice Minister Marios Hartsiotis, for the start of the new academic year.
Christodoulides visited the university halls and spoke with academic staff and students.
Students highlighted housing and traffic as the main issues they face.
“There are problems, there are difficulties, with the main issue being housing,” the president said, when asked by reporters what the students told him.
He added that there are currently 300 dormitories at Tepak, while another 500 dormitories are under construction.
“So, in a very short time we will have 800 dormitories. There are about 900 requests a year, so we will be at a very good stage,” he said.
At the same time, he said the issue of traffic was also raised by the students.
“There should be, especially from the new residence halls that are being built, a way to get to the city centre without using cars and we will encourage that to be done to address the traffic challenge as well,” he said.
In relation to his visit to the university, the president said that he had promised Michalis, a first-year student with disabilities, that he would go with him on his first day at the university.
“Michalis is a child who is showing us the way. I told him that I will go with him. I want to thank the university that we have ensured that he will have the same opportunities and rights as his fellow students,” he said.
He added that for him “in social issues, it is where we are judged as a state, as a nation, as a society, on a daily basis. We have taken our responsibility to ensure that Michalis and all children have the same opportunities.”
