ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS AND THE EUROZONE CRISIS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF GREECE AND PORTUGAL

The Eurozone crisis that erupted in late 2009 had a strong impact on the countries of the EU periphery, triggering a range of fiscal and structural adjustments at all levels of government. Greece and Portugal were most affected by the crisis and embarked on fiscal consolidation programmes in exchange for the external financial assistance packages. Public administration was a key reform area where large-scale adjustments needed to be made in a relatively short period of time. This paper seeks to assess the impact of the fiscal adjustment programmes on the Greek and Portuguese public administrations. Drawing on empirical evidence from the period 2009-2016, the effect of the initiated policies is analyzed with reference to quantitative and qualitative indicators. The findings of the comparative study highlight certain similarities and differences in the way that austerity policies affected the domestic administrative systems. The paper also offers some possible explanations for the observed variations in the outcomes and the prospects of the reform programmes

The role and performance of independent regulatory agencies in post-crisis Greece

The importance of independent agencies aiming to regulate the market has increased during the crisis years. Existing agencies such as the Hellenic Telecommunications and Post Commission, the Regulatory Authority for Energy and the Hellenic Competition Committee have been strengthened while new ones such as the Regulatory Authority for Railways and the Regulatory Authority for Ports have been introduced. This has been the result of the increased pressure for privatizations and the liberalization of sectors of the economy (network industries) which used to be dominated by state-owned enterprises (DEKO). This paper aims to map the landscape of independent regulatory agencies (IRAs) in Greece and to provide an assessment their performance up to now

State Reform & Privatization Policies in Greece: Questions of Democracy, Accountability and Equity

The Greek economy shifted towards privatization andliberalization after the mid 1990s. These policies were part of abroader process of state reform, which aimed at reducinggovernment’s involvement in major sectors of the economy, suchas public utilities and the financial/banking sectors. However,this transition added new financial burdens to the state,generating substantial amounts of debt which peaked during thecurrent financial crisis. The purpose of this contribution is toreview the restructuring of the state via privatization policies andto assess the effect of the reforms on democracy, accountabilityand social equity. These questions are being addressed through acombination of theory and empirical evidence, by comparing andcontrasting the energy and telecommunications sectors