ATHENS: Despite the unfavourable economic climate, which has affected exports in 2015 and taken a negative toll to almost all sectors, olive oil, fruit and vegetables and processed products have shown even the most sceptical that Greece is still in a position to hold a good share of the global market.
In 2015, two billion Euro have gone into the Greek economy from the export of Greek agricultural products, and these could also act as leverage point for the growth of exports in the year ahead.
The Greek food and drinks sector account for 28% of the value of the country’s total exports. At the same time, the Greek Agrofood sector accounts for 25 of the 100 leading export products. It is worth noting that Greece is a major supplier of agricultural products in the developed markets of OECD countries. Europe, North America, Russia and the United Arab Emirates are the main recipients of Greek agricultural products.
In any case, the objective is to increase the market share and penetration of these products into new, dynamically developing markets. Another goal is to increase their added value through investments in research, innovation, strategic marketing and modern promotional techniques. To achieve this, they should build on existing strengths, such as high quality products, but also on the well-established distribution networks that already exist in developed markets.
According to the president of the Panhellenic Exporters Association, Mr Ch. Sakellaridi, the basic expectation for Greek exports in 2016 is both a return to normality, especially in terms of revenue, and the realisation of other confidence-boosting effects on the state and future of the country, both within and outside its borders.
Some of the prospects include:
* Removing the political and budgetary uncertainty.
* A smooth reopening of the financial system after the new recapitalization of banks, by removing capital controls.
* The activation of new financial instruments, such as the NSRF and the NDP
* The Promotion of reforms to consolidate a stable and development friendly business, investment and taxation framework.
