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Promoting development, employment and competitiveness through public administration reform and continued efforts for budget stabilization are the provisions in the first quarterly report by the leader of the European Commission action group, Horst Reichenbach. The text also contains the member-states of the European Union and international organizations willing to contribute by offering technical assistance to the efforts of Greece to achieve the necessary structural changes set out in the Agreement of July 21.

The report identifies three main challenges for the Greek government, for which it will receive technical assistance from the European Union action group:

 - Speeding up 100 projects of the National Strategic Reference Framework amounting to € 11 billion, with emphasis on the operation of highways, waste management and investment in electricity generation as well as on the increase of liquidity of small- and medium-sized enterprises

- Immediate collection of € 6-8 billion from a total of € 60 billion in unpaid taxes

- Immediate reform of the public administration

According to the action group, "Kalikratis" laws on the reorganization of the administrative division of Greece voted by the previous government and the supply agency have not found a solution to the deep structural problems of the administration. Constant monitoring of progress through data and figures is necessary. The report states that the Greek government has adopted a decision to form a high-level steering group to reform the state, headed by the Prime Minister. Inter-ministerial committee will be established to coordinate reform efforts.

The Ministry of Administrative Reform has signed an agreement with the action group to provide technical assistance in the following areas: structure and rules of operation for the Greek public administration, budget management and monitoring, human resources management, electronic management, better management control, reducing bureaucracy and eliminating corruption.

Greek authorities have already adopted the provision of technical assistance from France for public administration structure and rules. Currently, negotiations for cooperation with German authorities to provide technical assistance in the field of decentralization and powers of regional and local authorities are underway with the assistance of the action group.

Yesterday, the Minister of Administrative Reform, Dimitris Repas, ordered the formation of committees that will conduct contests and receive and evaluate services, supplies and projects. It is believed that the act will greatly reduce corruption in the public sector. During a meeting in the Ministry, it was decided to strictly observe the time limits for the labour reserve regime, the reorganization of structures and the inclusion of civil servants in the new unified payroll table.

The National Strategic Reference Framework will allocate two billion euros in the form of guarantees for the European Investment Bank to finance large infrastructure projects and companies through loans from Greek banks. This decision and the compilation of a list of priority projects for development and employment belong to the action group. It also offers a fast and effective liberalization of markets and occupations. The chapter on "Accelerating the projects of political cohesion" in the report by the action group highlights the long delay in implementing major infrastructure projects and the serious liquidity problems of the Greek economy. "Particularly important are the five major concession projects for the Greek highways, four of which have currently been stopped due to the crisis and changes in economic and financial conditions." The action group offers solutions through investing EU funds in order to achieve liquidity:

1. Amounts up to € 1.5 billion can be used to support projects and activities co-funded through the cohesion policy. This proposal applies mainly to some of the priority projects, a few of which are already at risk.

2. Funds in the amount of € 500 million can be granted for joint management of funds for financial engineering, managed mostly by the European Investment Bank. Thus, financial institutions will have access to liquidity and will be then able to lend to small- and medium-sized enterprises.

In the chapter on the state of the health sector, Horst Reichenbach describes the presence of "hidden" deficits of medicines and equipment. As for the judicial reform, the report indicates that priority will be given to completing tax cases by speeding up the process of out-of-court settlements in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice. By the end of the month, the German technocrat expects to receive proposals from a group of independent Greek experts to assess the situation in detail and to offer technical assistance. The Ministry of Health has requested assistance in pricing and limiting the consumption of medicines.

For Horst Reichenbach the health sector is particularly important in the efforts to streamline finances. He believes that data relating to disproportionate costs for medical equipment and medicines are not recorded in the health care costs. He notes that health care costs in Greece in 2008 were 5.9% of GDP, while the EU-wide average rate was 7.4%. These figures do not account for the effect of the GDP drop, which occurred after 2008. This means that the actual rate is higher than the one recorded during the last three years.

The report states the intent of the Ministry of Justice to initiate a reform in the judicial system by clearing pending cases, amending the Civil Procedure Code, enhancing the option for out-of-court settlement and establishing a framework for reporting and monitoring the system performance. The governments of France, the Netherlands, Austria and Britain have offered technical assistance in the specific field.