K. Frangogiannis: The flow of foreign investment has not been affected despite the war in Ukraine

“The country has come out of a long period of economic crisis and despite the war in Ukraine it stands up and looks to the future with optimism,” the deputy foreign minister in charge of Economic Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs said in an interview with the online newspaper “power game” today. , Costas Frangogianis and notes: “We still expect that the Greek economy will grow significantly in 2022”, although “we are already paying the price of war” with “significant inflationary pressures”.

Mr. Frangogiannis assures that “the flow of foreign investments in the country has not been affected so far”, emphasizing that “the real goal is to ensure that we will continue our development course”. “At the same time, we are striving to achieve the lowest possible energy prices for consumers, households and businesses.”

Specifically for foreign investments, it cites the data issued by the Bank of Greece, according to which the inflows of Foreign Direct Investments in Greece for the whole of 2021 marked an impressive increase of 74.3%. “These are record levels (the largest, net inflows since 2002), which confirm the upward trend of the Greek economy and the successful effort made in recent years to attract foreign investment in Greece,” he points out.

Regarding 2022, the Undersecretary of State clarifies that “at the beginning of the year we had files with requests for strategic investments totaling 7 billion euros. again over 7 billion, while another 30 files are under construction “.

Asked whether the upcoming election period will affect both the attraction and the realization of foreign investments, he stressed that “Business as usual”, a term of the private economy, is “the rule by which we proceed regardless of crises, obstacles and political developments in it.” “We are moving forward with the strategic plan that has been prepared for each sector and we are focusing on the results and deliverables.” At the same time, he states that “as a political system, we, all those who participate in it, must put our country above any short-term political risk”.

Regarding the recent large-scale mission to Saudi Arabia, Mr. Frangogiannis notes the “common interest from both sides”, explaining that “there are many prospects in the fields of tourism, shipping, energy and especially in renewable sources, construction, digital technologies. but also the agri-food sector “. “In fact, significant collaborations with a national footprint have already been announced. Such as the agreement on the principle of ELPE with the Saudi state oil company SAUDI ARAMCO for a potential increase in the supply of crude oil and other products. This is a national agreement as it shields energy security. “And it is indicative of the strategic relationship we have developed, at the moment, with Saudi Arabia, which is at the best level of all the previous years,” he added. Moreover, as he claims, “towards the end of May, we will receive in Athens a correspondingly large mission from Saudi Arabia as a continuation of our visit”.

Finally, the Undersecretary of State, referring to the National Strategic Plan for Extroversion for 2022, stressed that this includes 670 actions, 33.6% oriented towards export promotion, in 47 target countries, many of which are new, emerging and dynamic markets such as sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and India. “With the new tools and the substantial help that Economic Diplomacy and Enterprise Greece are now able to offer, it is estimated that it can be the turning point for the Greek economy to enter a new era”, points out Mr. Frangogiannis, explaining that “the plan will be updated every year both in terms of the target markets set by the country and in terms of investments. Its presentation will take place within the next two months, however it is already in the process of implementation”.

Source: AMPE