Athens, 8 December 2022

60th Plenary Session of Black Sea Economic Cooperation Parliamentary Assembly

A parliamentary delegation of the Hellenic Parliament consisting of MPs Maria - Alexandra Kefala, as head, and Christos Giannoulis, participated in the work of the 60th Plenary Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC), which took place in Belgrade, from 6 to 8 December.  

The work was conducted in a tense atmosphere, due to the Russian delegation's failure to obtain the necessary majority for the accreditation of its members, which led to its withdrawal from the work. The main topic of discussion at the Plenary Session was “The role of parliaments and interparliamentary cooperation in stimulating economic growth in the Wider Black Sea region”.

In her intervention Mrs Kefala noted that the role played by Parliaments and inter-parliamentary cooperation is of major importance in stimulating economic growth in the Wider Black Sea region, stressing that attracting foreign investments, adopting transparent policies, promoting good business practices and ensuring a well-organised institutional framework are some of the areas where the national parliaments are called to take legislative initiatives that will result in effective policies and closer cooperation among the BSEC member states, both at a regional and a national level.This cooperation becomes even more urgent in the difficult time period we are going through, as the war rages in Ukraine. Regarding Greece, Mrs Kefala stressed that extroversion is a central strategic plan for our Government and during the last 3 years our country’s foreign policy has focused on strategies expected to generate a strong economic perspective. In this direction, she added, contributes the submission of the plan “National Strategy for Extroversion” for the years 2021 and 2022, which aims to boost foreign investments through the promotion of the country`s economic and commercial position, at a regional and global level.

With regard to the agricultural sector in the BSEC member states after the pandemic, she referred to the food and energy crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine which resulted in rising prices in the world food markets. Mrs Kefala also stressed that Greece has successfully kept the agricultural production process active and the agri-food supply chain operating smoothly. She concluded that strengthening the competitiveness and productivity of the primary sector, upgrading human resources, strengthening entrepreneurship and the value of domestic agricultural products, protecting the environment and the natural resources, adapting to climate change and strengthening the social fabric in rural areas are the key priorities of the National Strategic Plan of the new Common Agricultural Policy for the period 2023-2027, the planning of which has already been completed.

 

 

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