Apostolos G. Papadopoulos

Migrants in Rural Greece

In early 1990s Greece became one of the prime destination countries for the migrant peoples of the collapsing regimes of the Balkan and Eastern European countries, experiencing, thus, a historical reversal of the massive exodus, in the 1950s and 1960s, of Greeks to the labour markets of Germany, Australia and the USA. This historical reversal seems to identify a pattern that is common to the Southern European countries. Over the last ten years, immigrant population has grown to attain approximately one tenth of the population of Greece. This development occurs at a time when pressures are being exerted on agricultural incomes following the reform of the CAP and subsequent evidencing of the first consequences of market liberalization in the context of a globalizing international economy. This paper aims at analyzing and interpreting the main findings of an empirical research programme on the economic and social implications of migrant settlement and employment in rural Greece. The research was carried out in three paradigmatic regions of the country: a) in a mountainous, less favoured region, b) in a region with dynamic agriculture, and c) in an insular region of agricultural and tourist development. The paper draws from a qualitative study of administrators and opinion leaders. It is divided into four parts: the first part presents the main elements of migration in rural Southern Europe in the frame of what is known as the South European model of migration. The second part discusses migration towards Greece and reviews research work relating to rural migration. With reference to methodology and the main research hypotheses, the third part presents the analysis of empirical findings concentrating on the importance of migrant labour for the operation of the farm and rural restructuring followed by a discussion of the position and role of migrants in rural society and development. The final part summarizes the main conclusions of this analysis.

The multifunctional role of migrants in the Greek countryside: implications for the rural economy and society

Over recent years Southern European countries have experienced a massive arrival of migrants, becoming net migrant receivers and permanent destinations of migratory flows. For Greece immigration is a substantial new phenomenon, with flows originating primarily from Central and Eastern European countries. It is estimated that the migrant population has grown to approximately 10 per cent of the national and nearly 15 per cent of the economically active population. The extensive and uncontrolled entry of migrants into the country has increased especially rapidly the settlement and employment of this labour force in rural areas. This paper aims at examining the various aspects of the multifunctional roles migrants play in the rural economy and society of Greece, and the reactions of rural Greek people towards them. It draws on field research involving both qualitative and quantitative methods. Findings are presented around three axes: first, the implications of migrant employment for the operation of the farm and the farm household; second, the wider implications migrant employment has for local labour markets and the maintenance of the economic and social cohesion of rural societies; and third, the attitudes of local populations towards the migrants.

Dissecting Changing Rural Development Policy Networks: The Case of Greece

Rural development has, in recent years, become a major area of EU policy, to the extent that the term has even begun to be overused in signifying a new shift in EU rural policy. The result has been a great deal of misunderstanding and numerous divergent interpretations of both the concept and the practice. Although rural development existed as a policy domain before the arrival of the accentuated ‘Second Pillar’ of the reformed Common Agricultural Policy, the fact is that an increasingly Europeanized approach to rural development funding, programming, and administration has developed in the post-1999 period. In this paper we argue that the study of rural development policy will gain a great deal from using a policy network approach to interpret the dynamics of evolving rural development policy within member states. Our main aim is to analyze and interpret the newly emerging Rural Development Policy Network in Greece, which aspires to separate itself from a strong and resistant Agricultural Policy Network. The example of Greece suits the purpose of the paper not only because of Greeces continuing reliance on agriculture and the centrality of the latter in sustaining rural livelihoods, but most importantly due to the institutional arrangements developed around it, which are characterized by a prevalence of agricultural interests at the expense of wider rural concerns. The concern of this paper is with the mechanisms of transition, and to a lesser extent with its outcome. One major finding is that the policy network approach to the study of rural development policy in Greece brings to light a certain transformation in policy structures, mechanisms, and administration. This transformation is not so evident at the level of policy style and/or policy outcome. Due to it having been labeled a ‘laggard’ member state, Greece has been affected by the Europeanization of rural development policy and has to some extent transformed its policy-making procedures accordingly. At the same time, the process of Europeanization has acted to empower civil society mechanisms and actors.

Transnational Immigration in Rural Greece: Analysing the Different Mobilities of Albanian Immigrants

In the last two decades, southern Europe has attracted a large number of immigrants due to its geopolitical position, its improved socioeconomic situation and the fact that it is part of the European Union, which is undergoing a gradual transformation into a global economic and political power. The number of immigrants pouring into Europe has increased tremendously, with the southern European countries hosting a significant proportion of the new waves of immigrants. The presence of immigrants in southern Europe is evident not only in urban areas but also in rural areas, where labour demand is significantly expanded in sectors such as agriculture, construction, tourism and services, due to the rejection of these fields by the indigenous labour force and due as well to an ageing population. The chapter aims to synthesise empirical findings from three research projects carried out at different times during the period of 2000–2008 in various parts of rural Greece in order to depict the role of Albanian migrants for the reconstitution of rural places in Greece. The mobility of immigrants looms large as a coping strategy against the immobility of farmers. For that purpose, the “mobilities” approach is utilised as a theoretical framework for analysing the remaking of rural locales by international immigrants.

Migration and security threats in south-eastern Europe

South-eastern Europe is depicted as a highly insecure region owing to a combination of factors including its function as the gateway to the EU and the many socio-economic problems that have arisen out of the democratization process in eastern Europe. The already existing internal differences within south-eastern Europe have been rendered huge by the effects of transition. Migratory flows mirror the complexity of the political and socio-economic conditions in the area. This paper aims to provide an overview of migration trends in south-eastern Europe, with particular emphasis on the security threats they entail.