Commissioner reports severe delays in welfare benefits and inhumane prison conditions

On Wednesday, October 14, 2026, the Commissioner for Administration and Human Rights, Maria Stylianou-Lottidi, presented her 2024 annual report to the parliamentary Committee on Institutions. The report highlights critical systemic failures in both social welfare and the penitentiary system.

The Commissioner stated that citizens in urgent need of financial support face delays of up to two years for the processing of welfare applications, such as the Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI). She further criticized the lack of an independent hierarchy for reviewing rejected applications, noting that they are currently re-evaluated by the same departments that issued the initial rejection.

Regarding the Central Prisons, Lottidi described inhumane living conditions caused by chronic overcrowding. She reported that inmates are forced to sleep on the floor and use plastic bottles for sanitary needs at night. The Commissioner emphasized that despite the implementation of digitalization and artificial intelligence, human-centered intervention remains necessary. She suggested that the state must consider building new facilities and increasing the use of alternative detention measures, such as electronic monitoring, to address these severe human rights violations.