UNIDO ITPO Greece

Investment and Technology Promotion Office in Athens

General information

The UNIDO Investment Promotion Service Athens was established in 1992. Its mandate is to mobilise Greek resources and promote Direct Investment and Know How transfer from Greece into developing countries.

Services

Promotional Process

IPS Athens is adopting a systematic approach in promoting Greek industrial projects in developing countries.

• It firstly identifies business opportunities by organising business missions and country tours.
• In sequence it specifies these opportunities in concrete, screened and reliable investment projects.
• It promotes these projects to the Greek industries, and upon interest it intermediates to facilitate the cooperation procedure between the Greek and foreign investor.

At this stage it utilises the Delegates programme (see below).

• To enhance the scope of potential cooperation IPS Athens prepares a rough business plan in-house.
• It assists in the preparation of a fully-fledged feasibility study.
• It seeks financing for the joint venture project.
• It intermediates for the insurance coverage of the Greek partner's equity share capital contributed against non-commercial risks.
• It cooperates with local and international organisations to enhance its promotional capacity within the prevailing globalisation process in the international scene.

Delegates Programme

The Delegates programme is as an integrated feature of the promotional process of IPS Athens. Delegates are invited for a stay of 3-6 months at the premises of IPS Athens. These delegates are officials with profound knowledge of the industrial affairs and business environment of their countries of origin, expediting the promotion of joint ventures by assisting in the contacts between the Greek firms that are interested in venturing and their respective counterparts. They bring with them a portfolio of investment projects which they promote in the business community of their host country. To this end we have had for three months a delegate each from Georgia and Armenia and currently from Ukraine in cooperation with the TACIS Productivity Initiative Programme of the European Union.

Geographical and sectorial priorities

ITPO Athens has no geographical restrictions, but its regional activity is dictated by the preferences of Greek entrepreneurs and the overall Greek Administration. Therefore, the activities of ITPO Athens are oriented in the Balkan area, Black Sea Area, Russia and all CIS countries. Whenever though IPS Athens is anticipating extended business opportunities in other areas of the world like China, Vietnam, East Africa, Latin America and Pacific countries, it is duly promoting this information to the Greek Business Community.