Proxenos, the long-awaited program that will allow Greeks living abroad to apply for official certificates and documents from the Greece’s consular services online, has started operating in pilot mode in Australia, Consul General of Greece in Melbourne Christina Simantirakis confirms.
“As a first step,” Mrs Simantirakis explains “we issue birth and family status certificates as long as the applicant is registered in a Greek municipal personal records database. Our services will soon extend to providing more certificates.”
Mr Kokkinos, head of the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad, announced the launch of the program to Neos Kosmos back in May, emphasising Greece would save up to 50,000 working hours with this new measure.
“Greeks will be able to receive certificates of birth and marital status online, thus cutting time spent searching for such paperwork in Greece and saving money for the state,” he said.
“This is a jump in the quality of services offered by Greece’s consular services throughout the world, facilitating the lives of expatriates, offering Greeks worldwide the opportunity to get hold of official documentation from their nearest consulate, accessing central public records databases.”
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Kotzias explained back in August that “this action is one that benefits citizens, in the framework of a Europe as we perceive it”.
“Without the diaspora we are nothing but a crippled nation,” he stressed. “We aim to − via Greek expatriates − combine patriotism with a more ecumenical approach.”
Meanwhile, Thessaloniki Mayor Yiannis Boutaris commented that this “new breeze of change in the air” is positive for diaspora issues.
The mayor concluded his address announcing that the World Council of Hellenes Abroad will again be based in Thessaloniki.