: a stable, modern and favourable tax system ; reducing businesses ’ non - wage costs ; encouraging innovation and exports ; and a predictable, business - friendly economic environment. attracting and maintaining fdi would support greece ’ s exit from the crisis and sustainable growth. fdi would entail significant benefits for the greek economy : introduction of new technologies and promotion of innovation ; physical and human capital deepening ; development of new higher - value added activities and products, notably in the tradables sector ; higher competition ; and job creation. more specifically, export - oriented fdi is an effective tool that can speed up the restructuring of the domestic production model. the integration of greek firms into global supply chains, the transfer of knowhow and foreign market expertise, as well as the upgrading of production processes and technology content to catch up with foreign competitors would make greek businesses more competitive and improve their export dynamism. 6 / 8 bis central bankers'speeches delays, procrastination and unwillingness to move forward with privatisations that have already been approved and planned are serious disincentives to the attraction of productive investment. ( c ) innovation and education fostering research, technology diffusion and entrepreneurship are key to harnessing human capital towards creating added value by linking the currently sidelined public research system to the productive economy, thereby contributing to greece ’ s return to sustainable growth. generally speaking, public policy intervention can encourage technology transfer, i. e. the commercialisation of academic and scientific research ( licensing and patents ), and at the same time open up career opportunities for talented young graduates. to attain this dual objective, it is necessary : first, to embed in society a culture of entrepreneurship and excellence and, second, to utilise the resources of the existing guarantee and financing funds. the use of the finance instruments available from the european investment fund ( eif ), part of the eib group, and the national strategic reference framework ( nsrf ) 2014 – 2020 offers a solution to the funding problems of innovative small and medium - sized enterprises ( smes ). ( d ) reducing income inequality and tackling poverty the relative at - risk - of - poverty rate based on 2014 income fell for the second year in a row, but still remains the seventh highest in the eu - 28 and significantly above the eu - 28 average. as percentages of the total population, the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion edged down slightly, while the number of people suffering from material

##ncy ii directive and the conduct of an eu - wide stress test. the adjustment of the sector to the new framework is seen as overall satisfactory and, despite the adverse economic environment which obviously has negatively affected premium volumes, the insurance market is well - capitalised. however, there is no room for complacency, given the serious challenges posed by macroeconomic developments, low interest rates and the search for yields. consequently, the managements of private insurance companies must continue to improve their governance systems, personnel training, and transparency through the solvency and financial condition reports they publish under the responsibility of their respective boards of directors. preconditions for growth ( i ) an immediate completion of the second review the bank of greece as well as international organisations forecast robust positive gdp growth 3 / 8 bis central bankers'speeches for 2017. however, the realisation of these positive forecasts hinges upon the timely and effective implementation of the current financial assistance programme 2015 – 2018, which would signal a return to normality. this is why, as already mentioned, the successful completion of the second review is imperative. among its numerous positive effects, it would : secure the financing of government borrowing requirements and a smooth execution of the 2017 budget ; pave the way, together with the completion of the public debt sustainability analysis, for the inclusion of greek government bonds in the ecb ’ s quantitative easing programme ; bring about, in turn, a decline in borrowing costs for the real economy, facilitating restructuring in the private sector ; restore depositor confidence and allow a further easing or even full lifting of capital controls, thereby providing a boost to the export sector of the economy ; improve the confidence of global markets and investors in the growth prospects of the greek economy and allow greek firms to access international capital markets ; provide fresh impetus to the reform effort, geared to restructuring the economy towards a new, extrovert growth model ; and reinforce political and economic stability. ( ii ) acceleration of reforms as indicated by oecd and bank of greece estimates, the reforms can substantially increase greece ’ s growth potential. according to the oecd, the reforms implemented in greece from 2010 through 2016, together with those planned under the programme, can be expected, ceteris paribus, to raise real output by about 13 % over the next ten years. this estimate by the oecd is corroborated by relevant bank of greece research, indicating that structural reforms have positive effects, mainly in terms of total factor productivity growth