Is the European Recovery and Resilience Facility on track to deliver on its promises three years after its launch? Euronews reporter Fanny Gauret travels to Greece for Real Economy to find out.
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00:00 [VIDEO PLAYBACK]
00:01 [SPEAKING GREEK]
00:03 [VIDEO PLAYBACK]
00:20 [SPEAKING FRENCH]
00:22 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:48 - Designed to jumpstart Europe's economies
00:51 due to the various COVID-19 lockdowns,
00:53 the Recovery and Resilience Facility
00:56 was also created to build a digital, greener, and stronger
00:58 future.
01:00 However, in the last few years, Europe
01:01 has been hit by the war in Ukraine and high inflation.
01:05 RRF payments are unlocked when a country meets
01:08 agreed milestones and targets.
01:11 To date, more than a third of the RRF
01:14 has been dispersed, with many countries surpassing the 37%
01:18 they must spend on climate-related projects.
01:21 Annual energy consumption rates have
01:23 dropped by 28 million megawatts across the European continent.
01:28 And almost 9 million people have benefited from measures
01:31 to protect against flooding and wildfires.
01:34 On the digital front, an additional 5.6 million
01:38 households now have high-speed internet access.
01:42 With modernization of public infrastructure
01:44 also a top priority, the current goal
01:47 is to accelerate disbursement before the 2026 deadline.
01:56 Managing the climate crisis is one
01:58 of the major aspects of the European recovery plan
02:00 in Greece.
02:01 Last summer, 170,000 hectares of land
02:04 were destroyed by wildfires following droughts and heat
02:07 waves.
02:08 The Megara forest near Athens was hit particularly hard.
02:12 [SPEAKING GREEK]
02:22 The Greek anti-narrow program was created
02:24 to tackle these mega fires.
02:26 It has been tasked with cleaning and maintaining the forests,
02:29 planting slow-burning trees, and the creation of different fire
02:33 prevention zones.
02:35 [SPEAKING GREEK]
02:47 However, this initiative is a public one
02:49 and requires significant investment
02:51 to pay for its contractors, staff, and essential equipment.
02:57 [SPEAKING GREEK]
03:12 Projects financed by the Recovery and Resilience
03:14 Facility are established according
03:16 to the priorities of each country.
03:18 Greece can access 35.9 billion euros
03:21 distributed in grants and loans.
03:24 [MUSIC PLAYING]
03:29 The modernization of public infrastructure
03:31 is another priority.
03:32 This includes health care facilities.
03:34 In Athens, work is underway at the Metaxa Cancer Hospital.
03:38 [MUSIC PLAYING]
03:40 [SPEAKING GREEK]
04:01 This oncology hospital is the largest in the Balkans.
04:04 It hasn't been renovated since its construction in the '60s,
04:07 like many others in Greece.
04:09 [MUSIC PLAYING]
04:11 [SPEAKING GREEK]
04:34 Modernize health services, renovate electricity networks,
04:37 invest in renewable energies.
04:39 According to the Greek recovery plan, 38% of funds
04:42 will be devoted to climate objectives, 22% to digitalization,
04:46 and 18% to social projects.
04:50 However, economist Phoebe Kondouri
04:53 says the creation of a favorable fiscal space, more time,
04:56 and significant reforms are needed.
04:59 We've managed to get 50% almost of repayments
05:04 and have 1/3 of the money absorbed into investment.
05:09 It's an unprecedented absorption rate for Greece.
05:13 But of course, it definitely needs
05:17 more time for this fiscal space to actually transpose itself
05:22 into implementable projects.
05:25 So you need the public sector to really become productive.
05:32 After a difficult decade, it looks
05:34 like Greece is about to begin a new chapter
05:36 with encouraging growth.
05:38 But what remains to be done?
05:39 Is the European recovery plan an opportunity
05:42 to consolidate this progress?
05:44 The minister responsible for the Greek recovery plan,
05:46 Nikos Papadhanas, gave his perspective.
05:50 What achievements do you have since the launch of the RRF?
05:55 How is it progressing?
05:57 First of all, Greece now is in the investment grade.
06:00 And we expect the RRF to contribute,
06:03 along with the other European funds,
06:05 to more than 60% of the growth that we're expecting for 2024.
06:10 And we are expecting 2.9% growth of our economy,
06:15 whereas in Europe, the average would be approximately 0.8.
06:19 The reforms makes our economy more
06:21 interesting for investments.
06:23 And of course, the investments assist in creating new jobs.
06:27 And we've reduced the unemployment
06:30 the last four years from 17.5% to less than 10%.
06:34 What kind of projects are you prioritizing?
06:37 All the projects that refer to health, justice, for example.
06:41 We are modernizing, renovating hospitals, as well as
06:46 health centers.
06:47 At the same time, we have to make things easier
06:50 and Greece to become more investment-friendly country.
06:55 How do you make sure the money is well spent?
06:58 There's a European and national auditing committees.
07:01 And we undergo continuous examination.
07:04 So that is the way we secure that everything goes
07:09 and the money go in the right way.
07:13 What is your feedback on the process for governments?
07:16 Is it difficult to access these funds?
07:19 RRF is performance-based.
07:21 It's not a matter of how much money you spend.
07:23 But if you achieve the reforms and if you
07:27 achieve all the milestones.
07:29 So it is difficult, but it's more effective.
07:32 And reforms along with investments,
07:35 I think, is more useful for society
07:37 than only having projects.
07:40 Thank you, Minister.
07:41 Thank you very much.
07:43 For Greece, strategic investments and wise management
07:46 are opportunities to continue on a positive trajectory
07:50 and transform a decade of hardship into prosperity.
07:55 (MUSIC)
07:58 you