Strengthening economic and trade ties between Greece and India, promoting Greek products, and attracting more Indian visitors represent significant opportunities for the Greek economy. At the same time, meeting the labour needs of Greek businesses has become a critical issue, particularly in tourism, construction, and other productive sectors.
Angelos Tsavdaris, President of the Greek–Indian Chamber of Commerce & Economy, spoke to Dimokratiki about the potential for cooperation between the two countries, the strategy for approaching the vast Indian market, and the upgrade of the “Eustopia” programme for the legal recruitment of workers.
He also explained why skills certification, safety training, and more effective oversight of procedures are essential both for protecting workers and for the smooth operation of Greek businesses.
What are the main priorities of the Greek–Indian Chamber of Commerce & Economy today for developing relations between Greece and India?
The relations that have developed between the two countries create significant prospects that we are trying to exploit. Our core objective is to strengthen trade and increase Greek exports to India — a huge market with great potential. Greece does not need to compete on volume of production; it needs to highlight the quality of its products. We have excellent products that can find their place in the Indian market, provided we promote them with the right strategy. At the same time, we aim to further develop cooperation in tourism and establish Greece as an attractive destination for Indian travellers.
How can Greece attract more Indian tourists?
We want to attract more tourists from India’s middle class, who travel to Europe and are looking for new destinations. The goal is for Greece to become one of their main choices.
To achieve this, we must promote not only the well-known tourist destinations but also the opportunities offered by the rest of the Greek regions. Every place has its own identity, its own products, its gastronomy, and its hospitality.
We want the Indian visitor to get to know Greece in greater depth — to taste local products, discover different areas, and realise that our country offers much more than its beaches and sights. In this way, tourism can be meaningfully linked to local production and create additional benefits for regional economies.
The shortage of workers is a major concern for Greek businesses. What is the Chamber’s role in this area?
We have developed the “Eustopia” programme, which concerns the legal process of recruiting workers from India to meet the needs of Greek businesses. Recently we upgraded it after examining the needs and problems that appear in the Greek market.
We found that a company may request workers of a specific specialisation and end up receiving staff with different skills from those required. This creates difficulties in planning and operations.
That is why we moved to an upgraded framework with emphasis on training and certification. We want the Indian worker who comes to Greece to genuinely possess the knowledge for the position he or she is going to take up.
How will it be ensured that workers have the required skills?
A basic prerequisite is that training and certification of their specialisation has already taken place through a recognised European certification body. They must also know the safety rules that apply in the European Union and be able to meet the requirements of their profession.
With the upgraded platform, the Greek employer will be able to select candidates according to the specialisation they are looking for, conduct online interviews, and examine their certificates. For example, they will be able to check whether a candidate electrician holds the required certification and has passed the relevant safety-rule checks.
This process allows the employer to evaluate the candidate before proceeding with the selection. Our aim is to correctly match the specialisation with the actual need of the business.
There are, however, cases (and complaints) of workers entering Greece for a purpose other than work. How is this phenomenon being addressed?
It is a serious issue that must be tackled in an organised way by the competent authorities. The Chamber does not monitor every Indian national who enters Greece. Our role concerns the procedures and the workers who are included in our own programme.
