Dorita Yiannakou
Limited resources and a shortage of workers are among Europe’s biggest challenges, Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Tasos Chatzivasileiou said at The Economist’s 22nd Annual Cyprus Summit in Nicosia. The question, he said, is how Europe can turn those pressures into opportunities.
Speaking on a panel titled “The euro zone’s competitiveness challenge,” Chatzivasileiou said that would take realism, adaptability, cooperation and, above all, determination. With geopolitical uncertainty growing, global competition intensifying and economies and technology changing rapidly, Europe needs to rethink its priorities, build on its strengths and lay the groundwork for sustainable growth, he said. Kathimerini Cyprus was a media sponsor of the summit.
Chatzivasileiou said Europe should make better use of the resources it already has and create conditions that allow businesses to grow and investment to take hold. New defense and security needs, he said, also open up opportunities for investment and growth.
He called for Europe to strengthen its defense industry by investing in technology and cybersecurity and expanding its manufacturing capacity to reduce its reliance on others in strategically important areas. Working with reliable partners that share Europe’s strategic goals would be essential, he said. The aim is to build a stronger industrial and technological base, create jobs, develop a skilled workforce and bring lasting economic benefits.
Olga Eftychidou, a lawyer at Sioufas & Associates, focused on labor shortages that stretch across agriculture and other primary industries, manufacturing, services, tourism and construction. In many cases, she said, investments are delayed, factories run below capacity and major projects stall because employers cannot find enough workers.
Eftychidou pointed to Greece’s system for recruiting workers from outside the European Union as one way to fill those gaps. Under the system, workers come to Greece for a specific job and a set period through a formal application process.
Despite improvements, she said, employers and workers still face delays and administrative hurdles. She called for simpler rules, better coordination among government agencies, online applications and faster processing, with labor rights protected and legal requirements upheld.
Both speakers saw room for Europe to find opportunities in the difficulties it faces. Chatzivasileiou acknowledged that conditions are tough and resources are finite. In the end, he said, Europe’s competitiveness will depend less on how much money it commits or what strategies it draws up than on whether it can turn a crisis into concrete policies, investment, greater capacity to produce and results that people and businesses can see.
