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Commissioner for Regional Policy, Johannes
Hahn, explained that they have not been chan-
nelled to the real economy mainly because
approvals concerned Funds that are expected to
become fully operational this year (2012).
The European Union will utilize the facilities of the
NSRF and the European Investment Bank (EIB)
to provide SMEs with almost 600 million euros by
the end of 2012, either through the SME
Guarantee Fund, or through loans extended by
the EIB to Greek financial institutions, which will
leverage those funds and funnel them to the mar-
ket during the year.
A
s repeatedly stated by foreign and Greek
analysts, there may be opportunities amid
the crisis. However, in most cases these
opportunities remain unexploited, since no one
denies that red tape and the lack of reforms have
acted for many years as a powerful brake on
investment, irrespective of size.
There were also obstacles in financing the real
economy, as well as in supporting Small and
Medium-sized Enterprises, the backbone of the
Greek economy.
More specifically, in regard to NSRF funds, which
amount to many billion euros, the European
Trade with Greece
38
Growth: which way
for Greece?
Greece is looking for a way out of the vicious spiral
of recession, in order to return to high growth rates
as soon as possible.
By Artemis Spilioti