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Ladies and Gentlemen,
I welcome you to the ACCI Business Awards 2013.
Welcome to a celebration of entrepreneurship.
Please welcome the president of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and the Union of Hellenic Chambers, Mr. Constantine Michalos.
Mr. Prime Minister, President of the Hellenic Parliament, Ministers, ladies and gentlemen,
local government representatives, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends.
Thank you for honoring us with your presence tonight for the ACCI awards.
This is an institution that honors the idea and values of entrepreneurship.
It rewards vision, creativity, innovation and outward-thinking.
It highlights responsibility and contribution to society,
as integral elements of a modern business philosophy.
It recognizes the efforts of Greek businessmen along with their employees towards a modern business philosophy.
They convert these values to practice every day despite the harsh environment.
Especially today in a difficult period,
The ACCI awards aspire to serve as an inspiration to the entire business world,
but also to convey a message of optimism to the Greek society.
We want to show that the country still has creative powers.
It has businesses and people, who are facing the challenges of their time with courage.
Not afraid to adapt to new circumstances,
to seize new opportunities, open new paths.
This message is, I think, very important today
at a time when our country is trying to make the first steps on a path to recovery.
Ladies and gentlemen,
among all the ills that the crisis spawned,
we can distinguish one and only good:
That it revealed in all their glory the causes that created it.
Pulled under the carpet all the flaws and problems that we for decades found it convenient to hide,
or to degrade.
Today we know very well what went wrong in previous years.
We know very well that we have followed a tortuous and shortsighted development model,
which relied almost exclusively on private and public consumption expenditure,
with main vehicle the state loans.
We know that domestic production covered a smaller and smaller part of the needs of the growing consumption.
And also that the productive base of the economy declined instead of growing in an environment
that was hostile and barren for investments.
An environment in which state intervention left no space
for the development of private enterprise and competition.
We know now that all the previous years we have been lending to strengthen the trade balance of other countries,
to support investments, incomes and jobs abroad.
We know that state has been distributing money lavishly,
which made a few rounds in the domestic market
and then leaked abroad.
All these lessons we have learned in a very painful way.
This is why it is inconceivable that some want to stay hooked in the past.
To resist any change.
To strive to maintain the ruins of a tragically failed model
instead of helping to build a new development model.
It is inconceivable that there are guild and union leaderships
that continue to entrench themselves behind petty interests and acquis
and act coercively against the society.
But it is equally inconceivable that today market representatives exist
who seek stagnation
and remain stubbornly in a state of denial
which prevents them from even a single step ahead.
It is sad and disturbing after all that has happened
that there are economic entities, who react to reforms.
And instead of demanding more freedom from the shackles of the state, they assert even greater intervention
maintaining the illusion that it helps them to protect their business.
Let us finally understand the obvious:
The exit from the crisis does not mean that we will return to the reality we experienced in previous years.
We can't and we shouldn't go back.
Our goal is not that our partners lend us more
to sweep over the structural weaknesses of our economy.
We shouldn't be looking for the government to go out to the markets and find money to borrow
to start consuming what others produce, like we used to.
The idea is to start creating the national wealth we need
to gradually restore the livelihood of Greek society.
and this can only be done if we can produce more,
better, internationally marketable, and competitive products and services.
If we can increase the revenue of the country not through borrowing but through exports.
If we can better leverage the strengths of our country
to attract new productive investments
and create more jobs.
in this effort, entrepreneurship should be dynamic and innovative, not reluctant.
It is in its nature to function as a vehicle and not as foe of change.
The state has a responsibility to create the conditions and we are here to claim them,
through dialogue, suggestions, even conflicts.
We are here to fight for a stable and competitive tax system
for a more efficient public administration,
less government intervention in markets,
a rational and clear legal framework,
more transparency,
greater investment in education, research, innovation.
However the greatest challenge remains in our own hands,
in the hands of businesses.
It is time to understand that only one path leads ahead.
Either we find ourselves at the edge of the wave, or we will let it swallow us.
If we want to survive, we must first change mindsets and set new goals.
If we want to help our homeland
we need to focus our forces on a new healthy outward looking model development.
The companies that are awarded today proved they can excel, serving exactly this vision.
The recognition and encouragement is the least we owe
not only to these, but also hundreds of other small and large businesses that give their battle on a daily basis.
From our perspective, as a chamber
we think we owe them even better representation,
even more efficient services.
That's why we are currently developing a complete proposal for reforming and updating the chamber institution.
We could not preach change of the business model of the country,
if we did not take care of our own weaknesses.
To change our structures and our mode of operation.
The chamber is and will be present in the effort of
building a sustainable and productive economy.
It will continue to be at the forefront
a loyal and useful ally to every business sector
and Greek company that dares to confront the world of tomorrow.
Thank you very much for your attention.