Greece Before And After The European Debt Crisis

I still remember my professors in the University of Thessaly, explaining the meaning and possible consequences of the steps European Commission would take under the excessive deficit procedure for Greece back in March 2009. The figures for 2008 were released and Greece had a debt of 112.9% of GDP and deficit of 9.8% of GDP. This was the starting point of the Greek debt crisis, the point where investors started being concerned about the debt levels and becoming risk averse. This led to higher yield spreads, which in turn made access to capital markets for Greece impossible. On May 2010 Troika (IMF, EU and ECB) agreed on the first "helping package" which included a 110 Billion euros bailout along with a series of austerity measures, structural reforms and a plan of government assets' privatisation. Seventeen months later, Troika decides that Greek debt levels are not sustainable and agrees on a second package which includes 130 billion euros, more austerity measures, and a hair-cut on the debt held by private investors. The aftermath of austerity measures. Greek GDP lost 20% in 4 years. Debt rose from 113% in 2008 to 160.5% (est.) in 2013. Unemployment climbed to 27.9% in June 2013 from 7.7% in 2008. In terms of how Greeks were affected, unemployment rates reveal that a great number of individuals lost their jobs and those who were "Lucky" and still are employed have agreed on being paid 30% less on average. With a positive sign on inflation, this simply means loss of purchasing power. People who lost their job were not able to pay their mortgages or other obligations they had, many of them are not able to pay for housing, heating, or even food. Youth unemployment rose to the historical high of 65% leaving young high-educated individuals in Greece with no hope for the future. In addition, the austerity measures resulted in government spending cuts, not only on civil servants' salaries but also on pensions and benefits. Thus, individuals are not entitled to any benefits from government even if they are not able to cover basic costs. Pensioners find it difficult to make a living as they are not able to pay for their medicines. Hospitals face serious shortages; for instance there have been hospitals which did not have cotton or gauzes. Of course the financial situation in Greece has also led to a sharp increase in the number of suicides. Furthermore, some of the most significant issues Greek government faces are tax and contribution evasion. After numerous years of ignoring these issues, it is now time for government to take a closer look at the statistics and find a solution. By restricting tax and contribution evasion, government revenues will be boosted and further spending cuts will not be needed. Taking these into consideration, it can be noticed that the problems debt crisis caused were not just problems with a financial nature but also constitute social and health security dangers. So the Greek government and Troika must think twice before any further cuts are taken.