Trade with Greece
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specifically, the aim is to reduce the number of
days from 19 to 15 by the fourth quarter of 2013
and to 10 by the fourth quarter of 2014. The sec-
ond objective is to reduce the administrative cost
to export by 20% by 2015. Today, it costs
US$1,115 on average to export a container from
Greece, as compared to an EU average of
US$1,009. These interventions will help the coun-
try achieve a reduction of 10% in the fourth quar-
ter of 2013 and 20% in the fourth quarter of 2014,
in order to bring the cost to export down to
US$892 per unit. The third objective is to estab-
lish the Single Window, i.e. a one-stop-shop for
exports. All simplified procedures will be accessi-
ble through this Single Window, starting from the
first quarter of 2015.
The government’s intention is to benefit
exporters, since these measures lead to:
● Faster custom clearance (no queues at cus-
toms offices).
● A single –electronic– point of transactions;
automated electronic procedures for the sub-
mission/exchange of data & information.
● Faster and interactive updating/monitoring of
transaction flows.
We must all understand the importance of these
measures for the national economy. Based on
research by the World Bank and the Centre of
Planning and Economic Research (KEPE), the
successful implementation of all the above by
2015 will lead to:
● a 10% increase in exports;
● a 1.7% increase in GDP;
● 80,000 new jobs.
