THE FRUITS OF EXTROVERSION

Transcription

1 THE FRUITS OF EXTROVERSION by Panos Livadas General Secretary of Information Greece s modern path of political stability and economic growth has been marked with significant accomplishments in the fields of all her comparative advantages. In the summer of 2004, the wonderful Olympic Games were not only yet another accomplishment but also the opportunity for our country to unveil, before the watching world, her attractive contemporary self; in the process, her partners came to perceive her anew as a credible strategic player with great qualities and great potential. Within this context, Greece s extroverted growth, which the current government has prioritized since being elected in March of 2004, has been facilitated. 12

2 THE FRUITS OF EXTROVERSION To start with, the Olympic Games are, by default, so much more than an athletic occasion; they are a multifaceted event that can even transform perceptions about the hosting country and its people. That is so because the Games offer any one host the chance to massively present through worldwide, around-the-clock media coverage the full spectrum of one s comparative advantages. The chance to unfold one s true inner face that might not be widely known or even recognized. Greece is a vivid example of how an Olympic host can effectively disclose oneself. In the summer of 2004 and while presenting herself as the traditionally beautiful land of the sea, the sun, and the Ancient Greek civilization, Greece also unveiled impressive sides of herself that most people had not been acquainted with. It was Greece as a competitive market in a plethora of sectors, like energy, the maritime industry, the financial sector, or infrastructure; it was Greece as a beacon of stability, security, and peace; and it was Greece as a reliable international partner in carrying out challenging tasks. Hundreds of millions of citizens around the globe tourists, businessmen, investors, students, or leaders were engaged in the image, the sound, and the pulse of a stable, reliable, secure, and prospering country. As a result, the traditional stereotype on Greece was transformed. In fact, the data gathered from an extensive international survey is truly revealing. The world s view on our country that during the past involved themes linked to human emotion, like Hospitality, Fun, the Sea, or the Sun and favoured such compara- tive advantages like Tourism and Culture has now been enriched. It has been enriched with attitudes linked to human rationality, like Creativity, Discipline, Security, Teamwork, Progress and High-quality services. Greece, now rediscovered as a highly-promising strategic partner, has projected a new integrated image abroad, which engulfs all the positive perceptions that our country triggered to the world during the Games. She has, thus, been able to make the most of her extroverted orientation, which requires, among others, that such positive perceptions exist in order for products and services to enter foreign markets and for investors to be attracted. Greeks have seized the day to achieve both an impressive economic performance and fiscal consolidation: brisk GDP growth rate of 4.3% in 2006, budget deficit down to 2.6% of GDP from 7.8% in 2004, unemployment reduced from 11.3% in 2004 to 8.9% in 2006 (creating 250,000 new jobs, 80 percent of which in the private sector), receding inflation rate at 2.6%. Such microeconomic figures as the 10% increase in 13

3 THE COUNTRY tourism (2006) or the 18% increase in exports during the same time (with more than 34% increase in ) are also indicative of the state of the economy. The above tangible results of Greece s extroverted economy that translate, of course, into a bigger economic pie for all go hand in hand with the country s upgraded status in a region that extends from the Balkans to the Black Sea and the Caucasus. After all, the time for that is only right: our neighbouring countries, which in the past were cleavages impeding our contact with friends and partners, currently look up to Greece and want to follow in our path of economic development and active participation in the Euro- Atlantic organizations. All in all, our neighbourhood presents great opportunity for Greece to establish herself as a gateway to a market of 160mn people, in all of South-Eastern Europe, and as an increasingly valuable strategic asset to the international community. First, recent developments have rendered Greece an international energy hub. Specifically, the Greek momentum was decisive in reaching a final agreement (sealed during an elaborate ceremony in Athens in March 2007) with Russia, and Bulgaria for the construction of the Burgas- Alexandroupolis oil pipeline, expected to be operational by The above pipeline the first one to be built in Europe in the last 40 years connects the Black Sea to the Mediterranean and will transfer 35-50mn tons of oil per year to Europe and the Americas, in a cost-efficient way; at the same time, it will complement the Dardanelles. The Greek- Turkish gas pipeline, which is expected to be inaugurated within the summer of 2007 and has been agreed to extend towards Italy, is also bound to reposition Greece on the world energy map. Last, we played an important role in the creation of the European Energy Community (October 2005) that establishes a single energy market in South-Eastern Europe and promotes cooperation and solidarity. Second, Greece has greatly invested in infrastructure to maximize her distinct advantage in the maritime industry. With the largest fleet in the world and more than 260 new ships currently being built, Greece is steadily turning herself into an international distribution hub. Our Chinese partners, for instance, are interested in using Greek ports as commercial nodes for their products that are headed to Europe; to that end, a memorandum was signed during the Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis visit to Beijing, in January of Last, the 3bn Protocol with the European Investment Bank to upgrade our ports also adds to the list of promising developments that have drawn growing interest from in- 14

4 THE FRUITS OF EXTROVERSION vestors in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Asia. Third, Greece is an established financial and business player in her neighbourhood, holding the position of the leading foreign investor in Albania and F.Y.R.O.M. and ranking among the first three in Bulgaria, Romania, and Serbia. With more than Greek businesses in the area and her investments exceeding so far a remarkable 12bn, she is the base for reaching out to all of South-Eastern Europe. In addition, her banking sector, which holds 16% of the region s banking market share, has invested millions of euros to acquire and build networks in countries like Albania, Bulgaria, or Romania and now operates more than 1000 branches in the region; at the same time, Greek banks are progressively entering such promising markets as these of Turkey and Egypt. Needless to say that our country, being the gateway that she is and implementing bold domestic reforms, is attracting herself a new generation of investments; in fact, foreign direct investment in Greece was eight times higher in 2006 compared to All in all, Greece s new integrated image abroad has played an important role in her successful extroverted growth. Making the most of her geography and comparative advantages, she has built a strong economy and established herself as a gateway to the fast-evolving South- Eastern Europe. At the same time, of course, Greece s current path comes to solidify the shift in perceptions that took place during the Olympic Games. In fact, our country gives the world increasing reasons to see in her a valuable economic player and a valuable beacon of cooperation and peace. Increasing reasons to see in her a player that shows the positive way forward to her neighbourhood, which has been volatile and tumultuous for decades, and that has the leverage to further such widelyshared goals as economic development and accession to Euro-Atlantic organizations. On the one hand, domestic initiatives, like the New tax Reform Act, the Investment Incentives Act, or the Public Private Partnerships Law, and our deep commitment to fiscal transparency and consolidation both guarantee the stability and growth of our economy. This is the primary prerequisite, after all, for any one country to enter foreign markets and attract foreign investment and, thus, to reap the fruits of extroverted growth. On the other hand, Greece is a vivid example of how a country can accomplish for herself at the same time that she is a positive influence for others. Specifically, we are building networks of cooperation that foster mutual trust as well as set the ground for the further development of our region. For 15

5 THE COUNTRY instance, the Greek Plan for the Economic Reconstruction of the Balkans, a 5-year development aid program that allocates 550mn from the national budget, fosters stability and prosperity and supports the European orientation of the Balkans. Along the same lines, Greece has been active in the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization and followed a very constructive stance with regards to Turkey and F.Y.R.O.M.: in the first case, supporting Turkey s European perspective, under the supposition, of course, that she fully complies with her European obligations, while continuously broadening the economic cooperation; in the second case, referring the issue of F.Y.R.O.M. s name to the UN while being the first investor in that country. The world looks at and perceives our country anew. During the summer of 2004, tens of front page newspaper titles around the world about a beautiful country that can work wonders captured it best. The Greek government was indeed inspired by such titles to launch its new communication strategy abroad. Building extensively on the international experience and following months of close cooperation among different bodies and organizations, Greece s national master brand, which embraces all comparative advantages under one unique identity, took form and shape: it is a Wonderful Greece. Today, the logo Wonderful Greece is widely used in the national campaign of the Ministry oftourism and various communication projects of the Hellenic Foreign Trade Board, while it has also been adopted by the City of Athens. At the same time, it embraces an increasing number of important exported products, with the Greek virgin olive oil being the primary example. After all, the logo s presence on any one product carries over to itthe added value of the extra recognition and admiration that Greece has recently earned through impressive accomplishments in the fields of all her comparative advantages. At the same time, the credibility of the logo itself is also reinforced by the value of the exported product on which it appears; and last but not least, the brand awareness of Wonderful Greece is also greatly enhanced in the process. To sum up, Greece s modern journey has been one of great accomplishments. It was mainly the Olympic Games, however, that allowed us to engage the whole world in this journey. And it was the Games that allowed the whole world to rediscover Wonderful Greece. Empowered and confident, we have made the most of extroverted growth, entering markets and attracting foreign investment. The strong economy that has resulted and our country s status as gateway to all of South-Eastern Europe are strong testimonials of who we are, where we are going and what we can become; at the same time, they only strengthen the faith of the Greek society in itself and the faith of the international community in Wonderful Greece. USEFUL LINKS Secretariat General of Communication Secretariat General of Information 16