The Prime Minister Antonis Samaras arrived in Milan on Wednesday, where he is scheduled to attend the European Union’s summit on growth and employment. Mr. Samaras argued that the rate of unemployment in Greece – the highest amongst in Europe – is gradually declining and stressed that his government’s efforts will yield even better results.

At the basis of the Greek government’s initiatives are the encouragement of entrepreneurship and foreign investments, which Mr. Samaras noted were being bolstered by NSRF programs and funds. The coalition government’s latest employment program will use 600 million euros to create some 145,000 jobs, he claimed.

Furthermore, the Prime Minister explained that another voucher program with a budget of 170 million euros has been implemented in order to tackle the major youth unemployment issue and has provided assistance to about 240,000 unemployed people aged 18 to 24.