A meeting took place today at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Giorgos Katrougalos, on Greece’s strategy on Africa over the next 5 years. Others who attended the meeting included Alternate Foreign Minister, Sia Anagnostopoulou, Deputy Foreign Minister, Terens Quick, as moderator, as well as high-ranking officials. Greece’s interest to further develop its relations with African states, both bilaterally and in the context of international organisations, was noted during the meeting. Such relations have never been cultivated and there seems to be much room for mutually beneficial partnerships, also capitalising on the long presence of the Greek expatriates on the continent. Following their visits to Africa in the last two years – accompanied by significant business delegations on some occasions – Foreign Minister G. Katrougalos and Deputy Foreign Minister T. Quick both came to realise the willingness of these countries to strengthen their relations. Some of the issues decided during the meeting included making more frequent visits on a political and diplomatic level, continuing the business delegations to African countries and reviewing the possibility of further staffing the Greek diplomatic authorities in these countries. With regard to the bilateral relations, it was noted that political consultations with a series of African countries must be scheduled in the near future, Greek business bodies in these countries must be put into action, and people-2-people contacts must be boosted. With regard to this last point, it was seen as positive that Greece continues to offer scholarships to Africans for higher educational institutes and military schools, which will continue. The significance of the partnership of the Diplomatic Academy with corresponding ones in African states for training young African diplomats was also recognised. In addition, the Memorandum of Cooperation between the Foreign Ministries of Greece and Kenya in the area of Diplomatic Education is ready to be signed. With regard to the development assistance, it was noted that in the context of the European Development Fund, Greece will offer €460 million as development assistance to African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states during 2014-2020, with the largest percentage channelled towards Africa.
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