A total of €250,000 will be allocated for the creation of a modern animal shelter in Paphos, which is scheduled to be completed within 18 months, animal welfare commissioner Elias Myrianthous said on Wednesday.

Speaking after a meeting with acting Paphos mayor Angelos Onesiforos, Myrianthous said that efforts would be made to find a solution for the most appropriate location for the shelter to provide a “definitive solution” to the problem of managing stray animals in the area.

Myrianthous said that despite the existing infrastructure in the four municipalities of the province, the care for stray animals had up until now relied largely on private and mainly voluntary initiatives, as the former was insufficient to effectively address the problem.

A state-owned plot of land in the Anarita community was initially selected as a possible site for the provincial shelter. However, this decision was met with strong opposition from the Paphos community union and the local authority.

According to Myrianthous, the present endeavours are centred on eliminating possible hurdles so that the initiative can advance as promptly as possible, whilst he also left open the possibility of finding an alternative location for the creation of the shelter.

Onesiforou acknowledged the seriousness of the problem, but expressed hope that it could be overcome through cooperation from all parties involved.