29th Online Annual General Meeting WISTA Hellas
WISTA Hellas Annual General Meeting took place on Thursday 8th April. The AGM was held
online due to the restrictive measures for the pandemic.
The Members at the AGM welcomed Mrs. Christiana Kalogirou, Secretary General for th
Aegean and Island Policy, at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, as Honorary
Member of WISTA Hellas. It is noted that Mrs. Kalogirou is the first woman to be appointed
Secretary General of the Ministry. Mrs. Kalogirou addressed her greetings and noted that she
looks forward to a constructive collaboration between the Ministry and WISTA Hellas. She then
passed on the greetings of the Minister, Mr. Ioannis Plakiotakis to all the Members.
President, Elpi Petraki, presented the activities of the Association since June 2020 that the
new BoD took over, stressing to the fact, that it has been an active and creative year, despite
the adverse conditions, due to the tireless efforts of all the members of the BoD, and she
thanked Elina Souli, Vice President, Elina Kassotaki, General Secretary, Christiana
Prekezes, Treasurer, Despina Kalfa, Member, as well as the substitute members Mary
Kresta and Anna Giatra and the executive secretary Ifigenia Papagianni.
Briefly, the activities and work areas of WISTA Hellas reported during the AGM are as following:
The establishment of the WISTA Hellas Award to the Hellenic Coast Guard, under the
auspices of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, in recognition of the Coast
Guard’s role in the protection of life at sea during Search and Rescue missions.
The cooperation with ISALOS NET, aiming at enhancing and recognizing the role of
gender diversity in shipping and to provide the best possible information to the young
people.
The online Industry Panel Discussions on various shipping topics, with WISTA Hellas
members and distinguished maritime professionals as panelists.
The online WISTA Hellas Survey, that provided valuable feedback for future actions.
The launching of the executive education program «WISTA Women in Leadership» in
collaboration with ALBA Graduate Business School.
Networking actions for the Members
The construction of a website in both Greek and English, for better informing the Members
and the public, was further announced, as was the establishment of the WISTA Hellas
Leadership Award, aiming at recognizing the role of women in Leadership, either as company
executives or as entrepreneurs.
Furthermore, as part of WISTA Hellas social responsibility, the Members voted for “ELIZA” –
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children for the Annual WISTA Hellas Charity
Donation.
Mrs. Petraki thanked all the Members on behalf of the BoD, who she called the true driving
force of the Association and said: “Your participation is integral to our events’ success, your
immediate response assists our work, your remarks and comments give us food for thought,
all of which are very important to achieve continuous progress and to meet the Association’s
objectives”. During the past year many female maritime professionals have joined the
Association. WISTA Hellas is the largest second NWA (National WISTA Association) with 350
full members.
Mrs. Petraki also thanked all the supporters and the sponsors of the events and WISTA Hellas
actions, who contribute greatly to the achievement of the Association’s objectives.
The AGM was concluded with a pleasant discussion among the members, during which they
shared ideas and suggestions, while all committed to continuous contact and interaction with
any means possible.
