ATHENS – “The foundations we have laid for three years are strong and stable, despite the ever-changing situation. In Greece, we observe a continuous flow of investments, which fills us with optimism and determination to continue dynamically in the future,” the secretary general for International Economic Relations and Openness and president of Enterprise Greece, Ioannis Smyrlis, said during his speech at the Economist conference entitled: “SUSTAINABLE FINANCE IN UNCERTAIN TIMES: Solid foundations in volatile economies.”

Smyrlis referred to the extremely demanding and difficult situation shaped by factors such as the pandemic crisis and the war in Ukraine, which – as he said – the government is facing as a challenge and is implementing reforms to attract investments. As a result, he noted, Greece was now a reliable investment destination and a regional hub of stability and development.

In particular, Smyrlis stressed the importance of Economic Diplomacy, referring to the structural reforms implemented by the foreign ministry and the “tools” provided to exporters in order to strengthen the export profile of Greek companies, so that they can play a leading role in international markets.

“The year 2021 was a milestone for Greek exports, which set a record of 40 billion euros, corresponding to 22% of GDP,” he explained, pointing out that “for the first seven months of 2022, we see our exports show an increase of almost of 40%, compared to the same period last year.”

Speaking about inflows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Smyrlis said these approached 5 billion euros in Greece for 2021, the largest inflow of FDI since 2002.

In this context, he referred to the spike of strategic investments between July 2019 and October 2021, with approved investment plans exceeding 8 billion euros, while in the period February 2015-July 2019, they amounted to 1.3 billion euros.