At the same time, Mr. Rope explains the close cooperation between the Greek authorities and the Commission, which provides a solid foundation as Greece moves forward to select the next set of milestones.

The Deputy Minister of Finance Theodore Skylakakis, who participated in the conference, spoke about the immediate and successful implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, “Greece 2.0”. Mr. Skylakakis noted the openings of this valuable, development tool, which supports small and medium-sized enterprises, encourages them to expand and export, creates new financing and supports new investments in industry, energy and other important sectors of the economy . In addition, the deputy of the Ministry of Finance pointed out the value of the reforms of the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund for the Greek economy and added that he wanted as a legacy of “Greece 2.0” a more competitive market and more private investments, which will change the derivative model of country.

The general director at IOBE, professor Nikos Vettashighlighted the Greek countries that the National Recovery and Resilience Plan for the economy signals and in particular the incentives it offers for additional and urgently needed investments as well as for changing the production model of the Greek economy.

The first panel The day focused on the general application of the recovery and resilience plans, with speeches by the Director of Project Coordination and Monitoring at the Special Recovery Fund Coordination Service (EFSTA) Dimosthenes Voivodas – who captured the quantitative data of the implementation of the Plan and of Greece 2.0-0 so far . Unit in the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs of the Commission Julia Lendvai. Ms. Lendvai pointed out that “last Friday, the European Commission positively assessed Greece’s second payment request, following the satisfactory completion of 28 milestones and targets that represent a good balance between reforms and investments and prepare the ground for the implementation of investment projects” .

The second panel focused on the measures to support development contained in the Greek Recovery and Resilience Plan, which promotes social inclusion, with speeches by the Secretary General of Government Coordination, Thanasis Kontogeorgis, who briefly referred to the reforms but also to the plan’s key interventions for various social groups (women, unemployed, disabled etc.) and the head of the Unit in the General Directorate of Employment and Social Inclusion of the Commission Patrick Paquet. Mr. Paquet informed that “the European Social Fund+ (ESF+) has committed 5.56 billion. euros to address structural challenges in the fields of employment, skills, social inclusion, as well as health and long-term care in Greece. These investments will significantly contribute to strengthening the inclusion of vulnerable people in communities.” He also stated that “the complementary implementation of reforms and investments under the Greek Recovery and Resilience Plan and the ESF+ are important to ensure their success. They should be based on active cooperation between national, local and regional authorities and on the effective participation of stakeholders, in particular civil society and social partners”.

The third and final panel of the day focused on the Loan Facility, which facilitates the access of Greeks to financing, with speeches by the commander of the Special Coordination Service of the Recovery and Resilience Fund (EFSTA) Nikos Mantzoufas and the head of the Unit in the Special Service for Recovery and The Commission Felicia Stanescu , which hailed the completion of the two milestones and the first objective related to the Loan Facility, ahead of schedule. The governor of EFSTA Mantzoufas described the loan part of the Recovery Fund – amounting to 12.7 billion. euros-, which is broken down into a 500 million Invest EU guarantee program -especially for SMEs- that will mobilize more than 2.5 billion. euro loans to SMEs, 500 euro venture capital for innovation SMEs and 11.7 billion euros that address the entire scale of the market. The results are encouraging, with investment plans so far of over 9 billion. euro. Mr. Mantzoufas pointed out that the speed and implementation of the program led to a payment request of 1.8 billion euros (part of 3.6 billion euros) earlier than originally planned and closed his intervention by emphasizing the importance of the Loan Facility in the context of higher and rising market interest rates to boost private investment and improve access to business finance, through loans and equity support.

The day ended with summary of conclusions by the representative of the Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs in Athens, Chris Allen, who highlighted the steady progress achieved by Greece during the first year of implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Mr. Allen also pointed out that the Greek Plan includes a series of reforms and investments aimed at enhancing growth while promoting social inclusion. Finally, he emphasized the potential of the Loan Facility, which due to its size can act as an important lever for new investments, especially with the aim of supporting the operation and the digital transition.

Record

Greece received the first regular tranche of 3.56 billion. euros in April 2022, following the successful implementation of 15 milestones covering reforms and investments in the fields of energy efficiency, electrification, waste management, market, taxation, business environment, healthcare, public transport, as well as and the accounting and other control system of Greece for the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Greece also received 3.96 billion. euros, which were disbursed as pre-financing in August 2021.

On Friday 25 November 2022, the Commission approved a positive preliminary assessment of the second payment request submitted by Greece on 30 September, which is now being forwarded to the Council.

The second application request includes 28 milestones and objectives that capture a good balance between reforms and investments to promote the use of RES and investments in them, the restoration of lignite-producing areas, the reorganization of the railway sector, the modernization of public buses transport, the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises, lifelong learning, care for the disabled, the interconnection of terminal payments with the tax administration and the encouragement of electronic transactions, the provision of incentives for green and digital investments by the private sector, encouraging small business growth and exports, strengthening capital markets supervision, creating new funding opportunities for basic and applied research, attracting strategic investment and encouraging new investment in tourism, manufacturing and agriculture. Three of the milestones and at least the objectives of the loan part of the Facility, including the signing of loan agreements worth 586.4 million between financial institutions and investors.

Once the Council approval process and the comitology process are completed, Greece will receive €3.56 billion under the second payment request. Thus, a total of 11.1 billion will be disbursed. euros, an amount corresponding to 37% of the total funds in grants and loans for Greece from the country’s Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, NextGenerationEU, in the context of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.