On January 29, Deputy Foreign Minister Kyriakos Gerontopoulos briefed the Parliamentary Special Permanent Committee on Greeks Abroad on his portfolio issues.

Gerontopoulos underlined the importance of the Greek Diaspora in promoting Greece’s positive image abroad and stressed that “despite the economic crisis, we are trying to support Greek schools abroad through the Secretariat General for Greeks Abroad.” With regard to the draft law on the World Council of Hellenes Abroad (SAE), he stressed his conviction that the law should be passed with a cross-party consensus and vast majority.

On the issue of representation – that is, whether the right to vote at the SAE should be limited to organizations or whether individuals should be allowed to vote or a combination of both systems should be implemented - he said that he was prepared to discuss all options.