The need for Made in Greece “to acquire much greater weight and depth” so that “it is not just an indication of origin, but a guarantee”, Minister of Development Takis Theodoricakos stressed.
Speaking at the Ministry of Development’s information workshop on “Quality and trademark as a tool for your business competitiveness“, he highlighted the importance of quality, trademark protection and intellectual property as critical competitiveness tools for the economy and businesses.
“We want Made in Greece to mean that a product or service from Greece has rules, standards, controls, certification and reliability behind it.It should mean that the consumer can trust it and that the foreign buyer knows that they are buying something with documented quality,” Theodoricakos said.
“At a time of great geopolitical tensions, trade rivalries, increased energy costs, technological upheavals and pressure from third countries, which often compete with Greek and European businesses on unequal terms, the answer is to get strong production, clear rules, investment, innovation, quality and extroversion. That is why we put quality policy at the core of the productive transformation,” the Development Minister stressed.
Product safety
“We are talking about how a business can stand stronger in the Greek market and more reliable in foreign markets,” he explained, highlighting the role of national quality infrastructure, standardization, accreditation, certification and metrology. “Quality, brand, accreditation, standardisation, certification and intellectual property are not abstract concepts. They are tools that help a business sell better, export more easily, protect its product, stand out from unfair competition and gain trust,” he said, adding: “Only a productive Greece can be a safe Greece. We need to have a more productive economy, a more resilient economy, one that exports more, that relies on our own strengths, that creates more jobs and, through all this, to keep young people, our children, here at home. Because otherwise we cannot aspire to have a future,” he said.
In this context. Theodoricakos stressed that a modern institutional framework for national quality infrastructure, which brings back into focus standardization, accreditation and metrology, as well as the role of the Hellenic Organization for Standardization, the National Accreditation System and the Hellenic Institute of Metrology, was passed last year. Without standards, the business does not know which rule to play by. Without accreditation, the market does not know which body to trust. Without certification, the product has a hard time standing in international markets. Without metrology, there is no accuracy, safety, technical reliability,” he noted.
National Digital Register of Certifications and Audits
He made special reference to the National Digital Register of Certifications and Audits
which is currently in the process of defining the terms of the tender process and will collect data on certifications, audits and compliance. As he said, this is “a critical project that will enhance transparency, help the state to know, the market to know who it trusts, and the business that is consistent.”
Referring to the case with the Turkaegean trademark, the minister noted that it highlighted in the clearest way that “intellectual property is not just a narrow legal issue or a court case: it is a matter of national interest and economic identity.” He said that for the Ministry of Development and the Industrial Property Organization this case was a matter of protecting national interests, explaining that Greece achieved the cancellation of Turkaegean through significant and persistent actions. “It is an absolute vindication of Greek positions. Greece is a blue homeland and our blue economy in the Aegean Sea“, Theodoricakos stressed, noting that the country is firmly defending its national rights and interests, as well as its rights in the commercial field. He went on to say that Greece remains constantly vigilant both at the European level and in the United States, where “there is a pending legal battle over this trademark, which has not been definitively settled”.
He then referred to the protection of geographical indications for handicraft and industrial products: “Products linked to a place, to a technical tradition, to a local skill and to a recognizable quality can be protected, not easily copied, acquire identity, added value and support local economies.”
Three priorities
Theodoricakos stressed that the Ministry of Development is working on three main priorities: improving the business environment by reducing bureaucracy, simplifying licensing and digitising procedures, providing “true financial tools” for real investment and supporting innovation, research and new technologies. He referred to the new Development Law, stressing that “it is no longer a promise without a horizon”, as the assessments of investment projects, which in the past could take up to two years, are now carried out in 90 days.
“The most important thing nowadays is trust. And trust is hard to gain and easy to lose,” he stressed. He said that hundreds of investment projects have been approved, with significant grants, while the first three development schemes have collected 450 million euros in aid for businesses, mainly directed at industry and border regions.
The minister also spoke of “a great effort to put order in the market”, referring to the new Independent Authority for Market Supervision and Consumer Protection, which he described as a “very serious reform”. He said it created “an institution that serves healthy competition and protects the citizen”, adding: “the law is the law and applies to everyone. The consumer must feel protected and the serious business must know that it will not compete with anyone who breaks the law.”
He concluded by stressing that quality is part of a broader national effort: “Our government has a clear objective: to unite all Greeks, without discrimination and without exceptions, in the goal for a Greece that is more productive, more powerful, more outward-looking and more just. A Greece that protects consumers, supports serious businesses, small and medium-sized entrepreneurship and production, and asserts its position in Europe and the world with confidence and on solid foundations,” he concluded.
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