Commission helps Greece towards information society
The European Commission has approved a 2.8 billion euro operational programme designed to help all Objective one regions in Greece create the conditions for an information society. The Commission will provide 1.7 billion euro of the total package, aimed to address all areas relevant to the information society. Specifically, these relate to education and culture (17 per cent); service to citizens and improvement of the quality of life (37 per cent); employment and the digital economy (24 per cent); communications (19 per cent) and; technical assistance (three per cent). The remaining 1.1 billion euro will be provided by Greek public (20 per cent) and private (20 per cent) funds. Commenting on the move, European Commissioner for Regional development, Michel Barnier, said: 'I have signed today the first two programmes within my responsibility - for competitiveness and the information society. This is the moment to congratulate the Greek authorities on the effort they have made to establish a solid basis for implementation.'