Tourism and promotion of our cultural heritage
Macedonia and Thrace boast some of the most
beautiful beaches in the world, which lie at close
proximity with magnificent archaeological wonders:
Mount Athos, one of the most sacred places world-
wide, the protection of which, as well as the pro-
motion of its cultural heritage is a major issue;
Mount Olympus, one of the most famous moun-
tains in the world.
Obviously, we are referring to a region combining
elements that can only be found in very few places
on the globe and, with the appropriate planning and
the support of the business world, can become a
great magnet for attracting historical, cultural, med-
ical, religious and leisure tourism.
The opportunities for appropriately exploiting the
region’s advantages are huge, and it is obvious
that everybody will be mobilized towards their uti-
lization.
International trade relations
The Thessaloniki International Fair (HELEXPO),
which falls under our Ministry’s jurisdiction, is the
largest organizer of expositions, conferences, and
trade and cultural events in South-eastern Europe.
Hundreds of thousands of visitors from Europe and
all over the world gather at HELEXPO, as part of
the expositions that are held throughout the year.
Our aim is to fully exploit its huge potential, even
for strengthening relations with the countries
Greece shares borders with.
Our aim is also to support and promote the unique
and high-quality agricultural and livestock farming
products of each area of Macedonia and Thrace.
Our comparative geographical advantage makes it
imperative to develop and promote the ports of
Northern Greece, while we should also focus on
initiatives related to the advancement of Greece’s
trade relations, as well as the provision of support
to the business community of our area of responsi-
bility.
Innovation and young scientists
Promoting innovation, as well as supporting young
scientists and entrepreneurs is another top priority
of ours.
Our aim is to identify and eliminate, as quick as
possible, most of the bureaucratic and economic
obstacles that hold back the development of our
region and impede innovation. To get, though, a
complete picture and succeed in completing an
efficient central plan, we need to cooperate with
the academic institutions of the region, because
they are the ones that possess the knowledge, as
well as the analytical and scientific tools required
for identifying problems and proposing effective
solutions. The mobilisation and utilisation of this
scientific potential is one of our priorities.
Our jurisdiction also includes the Alexander
Innovation Zone, which hosts twelve leading
research and innovative entrepreneurship organi-
sations of Thessaloniki, and which facilitates con-
tacts with potential investors, research organiza-
tions and individual researchers, in order to pro-
mote innovative business ideas. Dozens of scien-
tific and business teams are already working under
the auspices of AIZ.
In regard to practical matters, the AIZ is success-
fully implementing programmes for the promotion
of cross-border business and academic efforts,
such as the TRIGGER and SMART SPEC pro-
grammes, which provide support to entrepreneurs
exploring new business prospects.
Implementation of the Development Law
Finally, we must be actively involved in the drafting
of the new Development Law —one of our main
priorities— with the aim of enhancing economic
and social cohesion in Macedonia and Thrace,
actively promoting growth prospects, providing
investors with information, and attracting invest-
ments.
The problems that have been identified during this
period will have to be dealt with in a timely and dras-
tic manner, in order to release the real potential of
the region’s business world and develop collabora-
tions with international groups, to the benefit of our
national economy.
Trade with Greece
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