It finally happened. The Greek state looked up from the coastline, noticed there were mountains inland, and called a meeting.
Last week, a working meeting took place between Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister Athanasios Kontogeorgis and the Mayor of Anogeia and President of the KEDΕ Committee for Mountain Municipalities, Socratis Kefalogiannis. The agenda was ambitious, comprehensive, and—on paper—almost revolutionary.
The subject: how to stop Greece’s mountain communities from quietly emptying out while everyone applauds tourism numbers somewhere else.
What was discussed (and promised)
The conversation focused on a new national approach to mountain and remote areas, featuring institutional changes, digital tools, fiscal relief, and multi-pillar strategies governments love to announce when the situation has already become urgent.
1. Mountains finally enter “horizontal policy.”
The government intends to embed regional and mountain perspectives into all national policies, with special attention to:
- mountain communities
- structural inequalities
- balanced territorial development
In other words, geography will no longer be treated as an inconvenience.
2. A new Special Secretariat for Mountain Areas
A Special Secretariat for Mountain Areas is planned under the Presidency of the Government—because apparently mountains now require their own bureaucracy to be noticed.
Its mission will be an “integrated strategy” aimed at:
- sustainable development
- retaining and attracting the population
- leveraging local resources
- strengthening cooperation with local communities
- reinforcing decentralisation
- mobilising the private sector for local economies
All excellent goals. Execution, as always, remains the interesting part.
3. A digital platform to explain life in the mountains
A new national digital platform is also on the way, designed as a central information hub linking:
- citizens
- central government
- local authorities
- economic stakeholders
Through this platform, people will (theoretically) be able to learn about:
- existing infrastructure
- job opportunities and employment programs
- housing availability
- settlement and business incentives
- practical living conditions
Which raises an unspoken question: if a platform is needed to explain what exists, how much actually exists?
4. The “mountain clause” enters the room
The government plans to apply mountain, island, and delignification clauses across ministerial policies.
The goal: to account for geographical disadvantage in national decision-making—something mountain communities have been politely requesting for several decades.
Better late than buried.
5. A 12-pillar master plan (because fewer would not sound serious)
An “integrated policy framework” with 12 pillars was also introduced, covering everything from housing to culture:
- housing
- employment
- entrepreneurship
- health
- education
- primary production
- environment
- spatial planning
- energy
- tourism
- culture
- financing
New funding streams are promised, earmarked exclusively for mountain regions—a detail that will be closely watched once budgets start speaking louder than speeches.
6. ENFIA tax relief (the part people will actually remember)
Now to the headline that made ears perk up.
The government announced:
- 50% reduction of ENFIA
- Full abolition by 2027
For:
- 12,720 communities with up to 1,500 residents
- selected settlements up to 1,700 residents
This measure is expected to benefit thousands of households in mountain areas directly—assuming, of course, they still exist by then.
Mayor Socratis Kefalogiannis welcomed the initiatives, calling them a decisive step toward a modern development model that can keep mountain communities alive and offer real opportunities to residents.
Deputy Minister Athanasios Kontogeorgis reaffirmed the government’s commitment, promising consistent implementation, coordination, and cooperation with local authorities.
All the right words were used.
Editorial commentary: where Argophilia clears its throat
None of this is wrong. All of it is necessary. Most of it is overdue.
Mountain communities did not start declining last year. They have been bleeding population, services, and relevance for decades—while development models politely ignored altitude.
The creation of a Special Secretariat, a digital platform, and a 12-pillar plan suggests the state is finally admitting that mountains are not a lifestyle choice, but a structural reality that requires structural policy.
Still, mountains do not revive themselves with platforms, clauses, or press releases.
They revive when:
- Schools stay open
- Doctors stay longer than six months
- Roads are maintained year-round
- Young people can work without commuting two hours downhill
If these policies move from conference rooms to cold villages in January, this could mark a turning point.
If not, it will simply be another well-documented attempt to save places that already know how to survive—just not how to be heard.
