MPs from the House education committee visited schools in Kaimakli on Friday following a request from parents and students to examine what they described as a “demographic alteration” in the area.

MPs Pavlos Mylonas, Demetris Demetriou, Christos Christofides and Chrysis Pantelides, along with Nicosia mayor Charalambos Prountzos and representatives from teachers’ union Poed, the district school board and parents associations heard visited the third primary school and third nursery school, where they identified “serious problems”.

Mylonas said “there are serious problems regarding the demographic alteration of the area and the fact that at the nursery school there are six Greek Cypriot children and 170 children from third countries.”

MPs were also told that more than half of the pupils in the area’s primary schools come from immigrant backgrounds.

Mylonas said teachers were making “a very big effort” to teach Greek and create conditions for smooth learning.

“Despite these efforts, there are issues that emanate many times from the lack of communication between parents and children with an immigrant background, either because they are working, or because they refuse to do so or the mothers cannot visit the schools,” Mylonas explained.

He said the parents voiced a “cry of desperation”.

“We were told that many Arabic-speakers move their children from other areas to this school because it has the most Arabic-speaking children,” Mylonas said.

He added that an interpreter had been requested for better communication between parents. “There are cases – very few, of course – where there is a total refusal to communicate,” Mylonas pointed out.

“All efforts are being made to solve the problems, but I sincerely believe that solving the problems is extremely difficult due to the creation of a large community there from a specific Arab country and region,” Mylonas said.

He added that social action was necessary outside the school unit to better communicate with the parents.

“The Cypriot residents of the area also need support,” he said, adding that the situation involved “complex and complicated issues”.