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In pandemic e-work, Greece sees chance to reverse brain drain
ATHENS, Feb 28, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – The pandemic was a wakeup call that
reminded Christophoros Xenos of what he misses most in London — the Greek
sun and pleasant Mediterranean way of life.
The 36-year old risk manager left Greece in his early 20s for Britain,
aiming to complete his studies, gain professional experience abroad and come
back.
This never happened, as the decade-long Greek crisis that followed killed
thousands of jobs.
But during the first coronavirus wave, Xenos took advantage of remote work
to return to Greece for three months — and homesickness hit him hard.
“I worked for three months from Athens and the Greek islands and really
enjoyed the weather, the quality of life, the return to the homeland,” he
told AFP.
With thousands of employees like Xenos capable of working remotely, Greece
sees an opportunity to bring back some of the minds the country lost during
the past decade.
“We want you back,” Alex Patelis, chief economic adviser to Prime Minister
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said at a recent Delphi Forum online event.
“Open offices, set up new companies or move part of your businesses to
Greece. We have the sun, the technology, and we are by your side,” he said.
Some 500,000 people moved abroad during the Greek crisis. The economy
shrank by a quarter and unemployment skyrocketed to 28 percent. Since then,
job figures have improved, but unemployment remains more than double the
European Union and eurozone average.
The exodus of half a million people cost the Greek economy more than 15
billion euros ($18 billion), according to a report by the Hellenic Authority
for Quality in Higher Education (ADIP).
Around 90 percent of those who left were college graduates and 64 percent
held a postgraduate degree, according to a survey by consulting firm ICAP.
– ‘I want to return’ –
The government offers a hefty tax incentive to those who move back to
Greece from abroad — a 50 percent exemption on income earned here for the
next seven years.
Xenos says taxation is one of the main issues still keeping people abroad
and the new lower taxation policy will be a big incentive.
“I want to return. I know that the salary won’t be the same, but I don’t
want to make a huge compromise that would make no sense professionally,” he
said.
However, there are other major issues that need to be tackled: low
salaries, state bureaucracy and internet bandwidth that is both slow and
expensive.
According to a study by the EU’s foundation for the improvement of living
and working conditions, Greece significantly lags behind the European average
in terms of creating high-quality jobs with good financial gains and
prospects.
Greece also ranks among the worst-performing countries in the OECD in the
employment of higher education graduates aged 25-64.
Even so, some Greeks have started to return.
– ‘Incredible things happening’ –
At the Athens Medical School, a dozen scientists have repatriated and so
far, have not regretted it.
“Incredible things are happening in Greece, the country lacks neither in
brains nor in capabilities,” said Ioanna Mourkioti, a 29-year-old biology PhD
student.
“It’s just that everything is done more slowly due to the Greek
bureaucracy,” she added.
Mourkioti worked on a team that managed to create a rapid Covid-19 antigen
test. They hope that a Greek company will soon move ahead with mass
production, allowing Greece to become more independent in testing.
All the members of the team have completed part of their studies or spent
part of their professional careers abroad.
“Our work shows that Greece can lead in research as well. It might be more
difficult for a Greek researcher, having to do all the logistics by himself
and lacking in infrastructure, but it can be done and it is a sector that our
country can grow,” said Nefeli Lagopati, a 37-year old postdoctorate
researcher in biology and nanomedicine.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1214 hrs