Over the last two decades, Macedonia and Thrace have experienced significant changes in their development, and new roles have been determined for that region on both the national and the international level.

The principal characteristic of the eighties was the dynamism of industrial development in almost all the Prefectures of the region: new jobs were created, new enterprises set up, relationships with the other countries of the European Community became more frequent, and the export activity of the area intensified. Macedonia and Thrace displayed dynamism and demonstrated that they were capable of competing in the international market.

One significant new departure in the 1990s concerned the changes that came about in Eastern Europe, the creation of new markets and the prospects for co-operation in the Balkans, the Black Sea, in Russia and in Ukraine. Greece has a long tradition of commercial and cultural relations with those countries, and Macedonia and Thrace have the added advantage of geographical proximity, which has always been a significant factor for economic development and co-operation.

The new demands and roles which have arisen out of the intensification of industrialisation and the new role of northern Greece have brought with them specific challenges and problems to be solved. These are connected with the international competitiveness of the area, with improvement of its capacity to be innovative and to compete on terms of quality and productivity rather than labour cost, with the attraction of international investments and co-operation, and with the development of a modern infrastructure capable of strengthening the productivity and competitiveness of the private sector.

Greek enterprises and the public administration have been striving to respond to those challenges. There have been efforts for private investments in Macedonia and Thrace, and for opening of new markets in neihgbouring countries. The public sector, on its part, has provided significant support, in the form of incentives, to foster investments, and has been implementing large-scale infrastructure projects in northern Greece, which bring the area closer to the international markets.

This is the framework for the Regional Technological Plan in Central Macedonia. Its purpose is to identify the factors which contribute to the innovation and competitive capacity of the Region, and to promote a new development strategy, based on innovation, new technologies and enhanced forms of industrial organisation and production. The Regional Technology Plan is developing in co-operation with the academic and business community of Central Macedonia, and I am confident that it will help in the implementation of a policy with significant impact on the area.


Filippos Petsalnikos


Minister of Macedonia and Thrace
Chairman RTP Steering Committee