In a press briefing with maritime journalists, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, Christos Stylianides, outlined his ministry’s initiatives aimed at enhancing safety, modernizing ferry services, and restructuring both the ministry and the Hellenic Coast Guard. Stylianides emphasized that strengthening safety in maritime transport remains a top priority for both the ministry and the government, stressing that there can be no compromise on safety, especially in the ferry sector. He also highlighted plans for the department’s modernization and restructuring, aiming to reduce unnecessary delays and bureaucratic hurdles for both seafarers and passengers.
The six strategic initiatives include:
- Passenger rights digital gateway: Establishing a platform for passenger rights.
- Time-slot digital management system: Implementing digital departure and arrival slots.
- Public-private partnerships for green vessels: Supporting green vessels for isolated island routes.
- Fleet renewal masterplan: Outlining a comprehensive fleet modernization strategy.
- Maritime competitiveness cluster: Creating a collaborative framework to boost sector competitiveness.
- Modernization of the Ministry and Coast Guard: Streamlining operations within the Ministry and Hellenic Coast Guard.
In addition, Minister Stylianides expressed satisfaction with securing substantial EU funding through NSRF and other sources, attributing it to Greece’s credibility and recognition of the Ministry’s significant work. He emphasized that achieving these goals requires collective effort from all stakeholders, fostering a spirit of reform to improve Greek shipping’s face.
The minister also mentioned a key meeting in Chios focused on combating illegal migration, which resulted in actionable operational outcomes aimed at reducing migration flows and addressing human traffickers’ sophisticated networks. Stylianides described the meeting as highly practical, translating political agreements into field actions.
Also present at the briefing were Secretary-General for Shipping and Ports Evangelos Kyriazopoulos, Minister’s Office Director Filippos Savvidis, Communication Director Nikos Stefos, NSRF Structure Head Athena Foka, and various other senior officials from the Ministry and Coast Guard.