President Nikos Christodoulides on Monday evening inaugurated a new gambling addiction treatment centre in Paphos, describing it as a “space of high social and humanitarian value”.

He added that it had been “created with the aim of offering support, care, and treatment to our fellow human beings who are tested by gambling addiction”, and that “this can happen to anyone”.

Gambling addictions, he said, are “a serious and often invisible form of addiction, which affects not only the individual themselves, but also their family, who often also needs support, their professional environment, their social relationships, and, ultimately, the social fabric as a whole”.

“We, as a state, recognise that addiction, regardless of form, is not only a matter of individual responsibility, but a multidimensional social phenomenon, which requires collective sensitivity, institutional mobilisation, and above all, a scientific approach,” he said.

Therefore, he added, “we must stand as helpers in every effort of prevention, early intervention, and treatment”.

“It is precisely within this context that I am here, showing the state’s interest and recognition of this very serious social challenge,” he said.

He then heaped praise on the Cyprus addiction treatment authority, saying it plays “a decisive role in the prevention and treatment of addictive behaviours, including those related to gambling”.

Of his own government, he said it has the “sole objective of protecting public health and the wellbeing of the public”, and that therefore, “we are constantly strengthening actions aimed at reducing harm and cultivating social support for individuals and families affected by any form of addiction”.

The new centre in Paphos, he said, “is precisely part of this strategy of ours”.

“It specialises in treating gambling addiction and aims to fill a gap which existed in the Paphos district,” he said, adding that the programme it offers “supports the individual and their family free of charge through scheduled meetings and following an individualised care plan”.

He added that the creation of such a centre in Paphos “promotes equal access for all to necessary support and therapeutic services”.

“It is, therefore, another essential step towards a society with less exclusion and more empathy,” he said.

As such, he said, “we are not just inaugurating a therapeutic space, we are inaugurating a new perspective for the Paphos district, because our fellow people who face such challenges have a perspective, and we must help them find a perspective”.

He also said the centre’s opening has a meaning “for our country more broadly”, saying that this constitutes “a perspective which is based on human dignity, accessibility, and a scientific approach”.

“I assure you that the state will continue to stand as a helper and a companion in every such initiative which strengthens mental health, social cohesion, and the human face of our society,” he said.