Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis declared that the government would be allocating about €2 billion to its civil protection mechanism as the fire season approaches. Speaking during an event on innovation and natural disasters organized by JTI Hellas in collaboration with the Embassy of Japan in Greece as part of the “2024 Greece-Japan Year of Culture and Tourism,"  Mitsotakis underlined the importance of incorporating new technologies into natural disaster management.

“The Greek government is going to invest in the coming years more than 2 billion euros, mainly European funds, to strengthen civil protection infrastructure,” he said. Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the JTI Hellas event. Last year, the northern Greece Evros region suffered the largest fire recorded in Europe. The blaze, which burned for weeks, destroyed a forested area roughly the size of New York City, including the Natura-protected Dadia Forest, one of Europe’s most important bird habitats. Floods later that summer also took a heavy toll. Everyone is aware of the harsh reality of climate change. Last summer was a very difficult summer for Greece, both in terms of the number of forest fires and their intensity. We’ve faced flooding, and it’s critical that we work together and leverage the best that technology has to offer in order to save lives, protect livelihoods, and make our communities more resilient,” said Mr. Mitsotakis.

During the event, the PM said an early detection and alarm system would be installed in the forest of Xanthi as part of efforts to protect woodland in or near urban settings. At the same time, the JTI Foundation said it would be donating firefighting equipment to the Municipality of Xanthi and its fire department.