OBSERVATORY OF DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN HELLENIC REPUBLIC

OBSERVATORY OF DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN HELLENIC REPUBLIC

Greece is a parliamentary republic based on the 1975 Constitution. No religion is recognised as official in the country, even though the Constitution specifies that "The prevailing religion in Greece is that of the Eastern Orthodox Church of Christ." Legislative powers are held by the Chamber of Deputies and the President of the Republic. The members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected by direct suffrage. Subsequently, they elect the President of the Republic for a 5 year mandate. The President of the Republic cannot cumulate more than 2 mandates. The President of the Republic designates the Prime Minister and, upon suggestion from the designated Prime Minister, the ministers making up the government. The President holds executive powers with the government. ////////////////////////////// OVERVIEW OF DECENTRALISATION The country's administrative division was amended to a large extent since the Kallikratis reform, initiated in 2011 to face the authorities debts. This reform led to an in-depth evolution of the institutional landscape in terms of decentralisation, especially a capacity transfer in favour of local governments. Today, the Greek territory is structured according to 7 de-concentrated administrations, representing the central state in regions and two levels of local government: - The regional level, with the 13 regions, the "peripheries". These come from the merger and the reform of the 54 prefectures and the 19 sub prefectures instituted before the reform. - The local level, with 325 communes. These are the result of the merging of the 1034 communes in place before the reform. The Monastic Republic of Mount Athos also enjoys a specific status: it is an autonomous territory managed by religious communities. 1

ADMINISTRATION OF MUNICIPALITY ELECTED BY DIRECT SUFFRAGE MUNICIPAL COUNCIL Deliberative body MAYOR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE DIRECTLY ELECTED FOR 4 YEARS NOMINATES CAPACITIES - Development - Construction permit and urban planning - Environment - Quality of life and functioning of cities - Employment - Social protection and solidarity - Education, sports and culture - Agricultural development, animal husbandry and fisheries - Civil protection - Issuance of professional licences - Transport infrastructure - Local development initiatives - Tourism BUDGET The Kallikratis gives independent resources to municipalities calculated on the basis of a percentage of the income tax, VAT and the property tax ADMINISTRATION OF PERIPHERIES ELU AU SUFFRAGE DIRECT REGIONAL COUNCIL Decision-making body PRESIDENT OF REGION Executive powers ELECTED BY DIRECT SUFFRAGE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President of the Region and Deputy-Presidents DESIGNATES CAPACITIES - Regional planning development, including investments - Agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries - Natural resources, energy and industry (water, mining resources, energy, industry and production management) - Employment, market and tourism - Transportation and communications - Public works, urban planning, land planning, environment - Health - Education, sports and culture - Civilian protection BUDGET The Kallikratis gives independent resources to regions calculated on the basis of a percentage of the income tax, VAT and the property tax 2

COOPERATION BETWEEN LOCAL AUTHORITIES Cooperation between territorial authorities is mainly fostered on a municipal level. The municipal code indeed specifies that municipalities can implement partnerships to jointly exercise certain powers. In this regard, the Central Union of Municipalities and Communities of Greece represents the interests of Greek municipalities on a national level and the Union of Greek Regions represents the interests of regions. Decentralised cooperation Territorial authorities can initiate decentralised cooperation projects. For example, Greek local authorities are partners of African and Latino-American authorities. /////////////////////////////////////////////////////// CIVIL SOCIETY Through informal structures, civil society compensated for the absence of the insufficiency of public power. Since the end of the 1990's, this is slowly changing, however, Greek civil society remains poorly structured and includes small entities. Supporting it doesn't seem to be a state priority, and indeed, no law regulates associations and NGOs. The crisis changed the status quo and the almost universal mobilisation of the last few years, and the establishment of the Indignant Movement,testified to Greek civil society's capacity to advocate. Currently, the dissatisfaction of Greek society tends to express itself in the polls. The rise in extremism, especially of the Golden Down, is the result of this. The position of women in civil society Gender equality is enacted in the Constitution: "The state shall ensure the elimination of disparities in practice, especially against women." However, numerous inequalities remain. Women have to face more challenges to find work. Their salaries are also lower than men's, for identical positions and qualifications. However, Greece seems to be willing to reduce inequalities. During its Presidency of the European Union, Government made a priority of the necessity to promote gender equality. Position of the youth in civil society Greek youth is facing major challenges, which was exacerbated by the crisis. Youth unemployment rate reached a record level in Europe: it went from 22% in October 2007 to 59.4% in January 2013 and dropped slightly between 2013 and 2014 (57%). Due to this situation, a high number of young graduates are leaving the country. When this is not the selected option, young people often have to go back to their parents homes. 3

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////// PROSPECTS Greece was profoundly affected by the crisis, which is not over yet, as well as by the economic recovery measures that followed. The emergence of the Indignants Movement, the increase in extremist vote, the emigration of the youth, and the change in the organisation of the territory, are among the consequences of the crisis. The territorial reform as well as the implementation of two decentralised levels, is in line with a management of public affairs that is closer to the citizens, as well as more transparent. However, the drastic reduction in municipal budgets after several years of severe recession, prevents these entities from responding to the needs of their fellow citizens, and therefore to regained a confidence that has been damaged by too many corruption scandals. Finally, Greek prospects remain to a large extent, subjected to the economic situation of the country, which is far from being in recovery. ////////////////////////////////////////////////////// BIBLIOGRAPHIE BIBLIOGRAPHY Constitution of Greece, 1975 Division of Powers, European Union, Committee of the Regions, "Greece" UCLG Country Profile, Hellenic Republic, 2008 Greek civil society: the long road to maturity, Civicus civil society index shortened assessment tool report for the case of Greece, 2005 La présidence grecque de l UE : bilan sur son action pour l égalité hommes femmes, June 2014 http://europe-liberte-securite-justice.org/2014/06/26/la-presidence-grecque-de-lue-bilan-sur-son-action-pour -legalite-hommes-femmes/ "Equality still failing women in Greece" http://www.helleniccomserve.com/equality.html Grèce : taux de chômage des jeunes de moins de 25 ans, Les Echos, http://data.lesechos.fr/pays-indicateur/grece/taux-de-chomage-des-jeunes-de-moins-de-25-ans.html «Grèce : une jeunesse en proie à son mal du siècle», Le Journal International, August 2013 http://www.lejournalinternational.fr/grece-une-jeunesse-en-proie-a-son-mal-du-siecle_a1135.html 4