“ Transforming public administration in Greece “
May 19, 2026, Electra Palace Thessaloniki
Online broadcast : YouTube: Economist Impact SE Europe Events / www.hazliseconomist.com
Joan Hoey , Economist Intelligence Europe Consultant
The purpose of a public administration reform is to enable the state to provide better services and a better quality of life to its citizens , pointed out Joan Hoey, Europe Consultant at Economist Intelligence and chair of the conference. She noted that trust in governments is declining internationally and that citizens complain that the state does not work for them. Greece proves that radical changes can be made in public administration for the benefit of citizens, she commented. She stressed that democracy requires hard work to work for citizens and that institutional change is a process that takes time and noted that Greece has been on this path since 2019. The agenda has not been completed, but the results are encouraging, the Economist spokeswoman underlined .
Kostas Gkoulekas , Deputy Minister of Interior, Sector of Macedonia and Thrace
A few years ago, in order to start any transaction with the public sector, you had to prove that you were born, that is, to present a birth certificate, the Deputy Minister of Interior of the Macedonia and Thrace Sector, Costas Gkoulekas, stated characteristically from the Economist ‘s podium. He referred to the acceleration of administrative reform under difficult circumstances, such as the crisis and covid -19. After 2019, we had a coordinated program and brought tangible results, he noted. He praised the role of ASEP and further referred to digitalization. He emphasized the need to serve the citizen as a priority but also to reward the most efficient and hardworking public servants through evaluation. Finally, the Deputy Minister referred to contacts with officials from Balkan countries, among other things, on public administration issues, commenting that in this sector, Greece is now an example to follow.
Vivi Charalambogianni , Deputy Minister of Interior
The period of the memorandum was a period of economic – and mainly social – crisis and it harshly reminded us of all the pathologies that the public administration had in Greece, emphasized from the Economist podium in Thessaloniki, Deputy Minister of the Interior Vivi Charalambogianni . She referred to problems such as bureaucracy, polygamy, slow procedures, limited technological investment, problems that, as she said, acted as a deterrent to development and investment. She commented that the administrative reform had to start from the beginning, as basic data was missing, for example, the state did not even know how many civil servants there were, as she said characteristically. She spoke of a revolution that took place with gov . gr and emphasized that it is a bet to digitize the state without replacing the classic bureaucracy with digital bureaucracy. The minister referred in particular to the role of evaluation and human resource development through the National Center for Public Administration and Local Government (EKDDA). Finally, she referred to the role of AI and the institutionalization of Reform Greece .
Yiannis Foustanakis , Secretary General of Public Administration, Ministry of Interior
The establishment of Reform Greece as a legal entity in 2025, in collaboration with a number of ministries, was referred to by the Secretary General of Public Administration of the Ministry of Interior, Yiannis Foustanakis , explaining that one of its main purposes is to export know-how on public administration to third countries, such as countries that want to join the EU. He noted that the form of a Private Law Legal Entity was chosen in order to have flexibility in recruitment and to attract experts from Greece and abroad. Mr. Foustanakis referred to relevant public administration reforms, such as timely recruitment and training of civil servants, evaluation and reward, transparency and accountability, development of the relationship with civil society, etc.
Evi Dramalioti , General Secretary for Coordination, Presidency of the Government
The changes in public administration have been very significant since 2019, stressed the Secretary General for Coordination of the Presidency of the Government Evi Dramaliotis . She referred to the cooperation of the National Center for Public Administration and Local Government (EKDDA) with universities for the education of civil servants. She emphasized the cooperation with the OECD, which, as she noted, recognizes Greece’s progress in issues such as the rule of law, digitalization, good legislation, greater accessibility for citizens, etc. Behind the numbers we see people who improve their daily lives, she said characteristically, while focusing on the importance of simplifying procedures for the economy, e.g. simplifying licensing procedures. We should not digitize bureaucracy, she stressed, while adding that it is particularly important to also carry out strict controls.
Pavlina Karasiotou , Secretary General of Fiscal Policy, Ministry of National Economy and Finance
The General Accounting Office (GAO) holds the country’s fiscal policy in its hands and is responsible for fiscal stability, which affects the lives of all of us, pointed out the Secretary General of Fiscal Policy , Paulina Karasiotou . During the crisis, the GAO played a key role and kept the country afloat, she said characteristically, adding that many procedures had to be fundamentally changed, such as budget preparation and execution, cash management, debt management, audit mechanisms, etc. She continued by commenting that as the crisis passed, the GAO proceeded with a series of cuts, with the result that Greece is today considered a country very mature in modern fiscal practices, as she said. Finally, he emphasized two reforms, the accounting reform and the new ERP information system of the public administration, and commented that the reforms are now decided by us, they do not come from outside.
Demosthenis Anagnostopoulos , Secretary General of Information Systems and Digital Governance,
Ministry of Digital Governance
Our country, instead of simply following optimal prospects, can now create them, and this is recognized internationally, emphasized the Secretary General of Information Systems and Digital Governance
Demosthenis Anagnostopoulos . He referred to four axes of administrative reform: digital strategy, mindset, training and targeting. Regarding the first, he said that in 2019 we had 90 bodies that exchanged data with each other, while now we have 850. In this context, he explained the progress that has been made in the field of interoperability and gave weight to the unified strategy for digital infrastructure that concerns all public entities. Regarding the mindset, he said that this has changed and that the country is pioneering in terms of conception, goal setting and strategy. Regarding training, he noted that agreements were made with large companies under which not only civil servants were trained in digital services but this opportunity was also given to the wider public. Regarding targeting, he stated that the country can and should export best practices to other countries and commented that the EU recognizes that our country is the first in improving digital services to citizens over the last six years.
Dimitrios Karamitsos-Tziras , Director General of the Seventh Directorate General for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (link)
The modernization of public administration also concerns the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stressed the Director General of the Seventh General Directorate for Development and Humanitarian Aid of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , Dimitris Karamitsos-Tziras , adding that the ministry’s duty is to use its structures, for example embassies, to transfer and export relevant know-how. He noted that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also preparing a legal entity for development programs and that it participates in the Board of Directors of Reform Greece . In this context, he explained that the Ministry promotes cooperation with third countries, cooperation within the framework of European programs and cooperation with various international bodies. He added that Greece is a co-manager of OECD, EU and United Nations programs, providing funding and expertise, while in public-private partnerships and in cooperation with other governments, it participates in development projects in Egypt, Ghana, Central America, the Western Balkans, etc.
Vasilis Exarchos , President, National Center for Public Administration and Local Government
The investment that has been made in the training of public sector human resources, especially through the National Center for Public Administration and Local Government (EKDDA), was emphasized by its president Vasilis Exarchos . More than 250,000 people in the public sector have been trained in the last 3.5 years, he emphasized, further explaining that this training focused on two areas: work needs and personal development in terms of skills. EKDDA is a key pillar for all these changes, for the transformation of public administration, he pointed out. Beyond training, the culture is changing, the treatment of citizens, he commented, while also referring to the importance of evaluation and the use of AI for greater efficiency.
Athanasios Papaioannou , President, Supreme Personnel Selection Council (ASEP)
Skills have timeless value, stressed ASEP President Athanasios Papaioannou , and referred specifically to skills that are important for public administration, such as: teamwork, orientation to serving the citizen, orientation to results, to the goal, ability to take initiative, etc. He explained that it is important for a public servant to know what is important and what is not, what is urgent and what is not, as well as to be able to provide solutions without referring issues to his superiors. He pointed out that skills in the public sector are now tested by internationally established electronic tests, which are scored anonymously. He also commented on the announcement for 4,800 university education positions. Finally, he referred to the possibilities and advantages of electronic competitions and the relevant know-how that ASEP has developed.
Antonis Psarakis , Executive of the Department of Structures, Ministry of Interior
Antonis Psarrakis , an official of the Department of Structures of the Ministry of the Interior , referred to the principles and purposes of multilevel governance. He explained that multilevel governance concerns the reorganization of policy measures through the reorganization of responsibilities. The purpose, he emphasized, is to be in a constant reorganization. He referred to the various levels of this model, such as delimitation of policy fields, mapping, problem solving, reorganization proposals, etc. In this context, he explained that closed organizational structures must be overcome in order to achieve the optimal geo-spatial scale for all responsibilities, as he said characteristically. Finally, he spoke of three pillars as prerequisites for the initial operation of multilevel governance in Greece: institutional, digital and operational .
Spyros Koureas , Head of the Directorate of Public Welfare and Public Benefit Organizations, Ministry of Interior
“Digital transformation is a decisive step towards transparency, efficiency, and institutional protection of civil society,” emphasized Spyros Koureas, Head of the Directorate of Public Administration and Public Benefit Organizations of the Ministry of Interior, adding that it promotes the strengthening of transparency in the public benefit sector, the improvement of coordination between the state and organizations, as well as the depiction of the true image of civil society in the country.
Angeliki Bourbouli , Director of the Training Institute, National Center for Public Administration and Local Government
“When the administration learns, then you have citizens who win, see the development, and trust you,” commented the Director of the Training Institute of the National Center for Public Administration and Local Government, Angeliki Bourbouli , who referred to the role of an integrated training platform, which is implemented as a lever for reform in the training of the EKDDA. In this context, she spoke about the importance of developing a unified and modern skills culture.
Dimitra Ioannou , Project Coordinator, Governance and Administrative Transformation in Greece, Expertise France
“We have been in Greece for more than ten years and have supported reforms that were requested by the Greek authorities – this was the secret of a good collaboration,” observed the Project Coordinator, Governance and Administrative Transformation in Greece, Expertise France Dimitra Ioannou , emphasizing: “When there is extroversion, when member states cooperate with each other, public officials have the opportunity to see what is happening in other countries and in a way to self-evaluate, to see where they stand, and to realize that in many areas they are on the right track.”
Kyriakos Tolias , Director of the National Center for Documentation and Electronic Content (EKT)
“Providing expertise in the effectiveness of the administration is of great importance, as is timing: when so many organizations had to collaborate on a project like the Recovery Fund, there had to be a horizontal operating framework – and the ability for us to all move together helped a lot,” pointed out the director of the National Center for Documentation and Electronic Content (EKT), Kyriakos Tolias , noting that the greatest benefit from the respective experience was not the results themselves but the shift in mentality within the framework of a collective national effort.
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