“Without neglecting the positive things that are happening, we continue to be at the back of Europe, with inadequacies both in dealing with simple everyday issues and also in issues that are decisive for the country’s direction”, highlighted the president of the Lyktos Group, Michalis Sallas, in his intervention during the presentation of Panagiotis Roumeliotis’ book “A Fragmented World”.
Unfortunately, Sallas added, “we are at rock bottom in terms of economic indicators and the optimism of our citizens, even in this Europe. I think it will be very difficult for us to find our own path, the path that will make Greece a serious and strong country. The current Government has significantly restored the country’s international prestige and distinguishes it, compared to the past, with a consistent fiscal policy based mainly on the overtaxation of goods and services. But a greater effort is needed to address the country’s needs and plan the direction it should take competitively”.
“Greece today is behind even the countries that until 1989 belonged to the Eastern bloc” noted Michalis Sallas and added: “Most of the problems described by Panagiotis Roumeliotis in his book, such as the increase in debt, the fiscal problem, the aging of the population , inequalities, immigration, the environment, climate change, etc., are problems that Greece has been facing for some time, constantly worsening, year after year. And although these are problems common to most European countries, our case stands out. It stands out in relation to the rest of Europe because it lags significantly behind Public Administration, which operates without organized scientific support and is marginalized by the clientelistic political system”
The bankruptcy was not by chance
“The operational structure of the State (i.e., structure-composition-rules of operation), as shaped by the parties in power over time, appears not to be able to respond competitively to the conditions that form, in each period, in Europe and in the International Economic Environment”, Mr. Sallas emphasized and added: “It is no coincidence that we were driven into bankruptcy by political bravery (to put it elegantly) and opportunistic fiscal policy over several years. I remember that even when we were on the brink of disaster and there were proposals to avoid bankruptcy and memos, there was an inability to study proposals to limit debt.
It is no coincidence that, in order to survive, strategic sectors of the economy are gradually or will soon be under foreign control, such as Banks, Tourism, Energy, Health, gaming, etc., are sold or transferred to foreign investment schemes. It is very positive that there is investment interest from private entities abroad for investments in our country. On the contrary, the sad thing is that infrastructures such as communications, ports, airports are being managed and owned by state-owned companies from other countries, proof of the inadequacy of the management of the Greek State.
From 2008 to 2022, Greeks lost a total of around 600 billion euros, due to decades of bad economic policy, helped recently by COVID. It’s like a bulldozer passing through the country.”
“Gambling is the first sector in terms of turnover”
Referring to the country’s wealth-producing resources, Michalis Sallas highlighted that we left them “without a plan and a goal”. We prefer landfills to the industrialization of the agricultural sector. We left industries abandoned in the international struggle, unlike other Western countries. We have left tourism on a chaotic and anti-development path, without planning how we can multiply its benefits in the long term.
The country’s leading sector in terms of turnover, more than double that of supermarkets, is gaming.
Continuous errors even by supposedly competent Authorities. Even in 2018, when the memorandums were completed, there was a proposal from the Bank of Greece, which led to a 4th memorandum and fortunately it was not adopted.
It is not at all easy to say how Greece will behave in a changing global environment, in a multipolar and competitive world, how it will find and create for companies its own “Blue Ocean Strategy”, to use the interesting approach of Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne in his 2005 book of the same name, about modern economies and business in a more competitive world.
Europe is behind
As Michalis Sallas highlighted, “for Greece to enter the ‘Blue Oceans’, Europe must also open roads”. But which Europe are we talking about? For Europe, which in terms of its decision-making process resembles a Soviet-style bureaucracy, unable to keep up with international developments? The one that counted on Germany, which for decades followed an anti-development European policy, seeking the peripheralization of the remaining EU economies and which relied for decades on the preferential relationship with Russia in the energy sector? In over-indebted Italy? In France, what is unlikely to prevent the degradation of its economy?
In a Europe that is constantly lagging behind other geopolitically powerful countries. For 2024, Europe will have a GDP growth rate of 0.6% and Germany of 0.3%, compared to 2.6% for the United States of America, 3.7% for Russia and 4. 9% to China.”
Greece without a plan
“Greece – underlined Michalis Sallas – has been moving forward for decades, without a plan, basing its competitiveness and despite its extreme bureaucratic adversities, on certain “brilliant” business exceptions in the fields of Tourism, Energy, Air Transport, Food, Construction and organized Supermarket Network. I am not mentioning the merchant shipping sector, which over time, because it essentially does not depend on the Greek administration, has been a pioneer in global shipping.
It was fortunate that we joined the euro in 2002, even if it was mainly for political reasons. But unfortunately we didn’t take advantage of this by adjusting our development strategy. Without underestimating the contribution of tourism to the Greek economy, no one expected that the model of “Mykonos sunbeds”, “Santorini sunsets” and “betting companies” alone would create and improve the country’s competitiveness by joining to the EURO. The trade balance was disturbed and the country collapsed.
Europe and Greece must make great efforts to remain standing, facing all the issues listed by Mr. Roumeliotis in his book.
Proposal on climate change
Referring to the problem of climate change and the green transition, Sallas highlighted that “Europe will need in the next six years, that is, until 2030, 396 billion euros per year for energy investments and around 550 billion euros, also annually, from 2031”. by 2050 for this purpose, that is, we are talking about 15-16 billion. euro. Greece’s ratio is 456 billion. We have not heard, from anywhere, a coherent proposal on how to deal with this.
How will this huge green transition problem be addressed? Views were expressed on the implementation of the 2016 Paris Agreement, which in any case may have some small extensions, given that the agreement does not have the strict legal commitments of the Kyoto Protocol (1997). Frank Elderson, from the ECB, expressed some opinions and concerns about the possible issuance of National Green Bonds, always with the fear of creating inflationary pressures.
My opinion is that national tools alone cannot be used for this huge issue of existential development. Core EU tools are needed. It would see, for example, the issuance of 30-year bonds, 500-600 billion euros per year, which will be aimed at the world market and especially at financial institutions. They can be met annually through the issuance of perpetual bond loans, suited to the insurance companies’ reserves. But is the European bureaucracy and especially Germany ready to accept such proposals? I find it hard to believe.
The amounts mentioned with the required planning only concern the case of the green transition. Let us then imagine the economic requirements to improve the competitive position of Europe and our country, if we take into account the other issues and problems raised in Mr. Roumeliotis’ book. In other words, Europe and each of its countries must reach deep into their pockets and I fear that contradictory policies will inevitably lead to a burden on the pockets of the citizens of each country and probably to a serious delay for Europe in terms of cosmopolitan changes of the New International Economic Environment”.
serious condition
Michalis Sallas stressed that for Greece to live with dignity and progress in the long term, we need a plan and objectives, intelligent and practical solutions, innovative investments and faster procedures by the State. We need a development policy different from the past, with strategy and knowledge to face the new economic environment. But above all, we need the existence of a serious structure and functioning of the State.
It remains for the political, scientific (like KEPE) and business elite to read his book, in the hope that they will find ways for the country to have a more competitive international presence. Let’s at least try. I don’t have much hope, but I wish it with all my heart, just as I wish with all my heart that the book be studied by as many Greeks as possible.”
The former President of the Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Evangelos Venizelos and the Professor of International Relations, Dimitris Kostas, also spoke about the book by Panagiotis Roumeliotis.