​​Central

The central Government is responsible for:

• Creating a safety net for the most vulnerable groups.
• Protecting children by ensuring adequate  living conditions.
• Planning and developing policies that promote gender equality.
• Supporting civil society activities that aim to promote gender equality. Integrating gender equality provisions in all public policies.

The central government has also created the National Mechanism for the coordination, review and assessment of social cohesion and social integration policies. This mechanism operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Social Solidarity. It also cooperates with other relevant ministries. Its competences include:

• Coordinating the development of social inclusion policies. It also reviews their effectiveness
• It contributes to the improvement of the social protection system.
• It establishes policies that aid individuals that live improvised or under the risk of extreme poverty or in social exclusion.
• It enforces the Social Solidarity income framework.

Regional

Regional authorities are responsible for:

• The determination of the conditions and procedure for granting property to beneficiaries, the issuing and revocation of the grant, the setting of instalments and the collection of debts of old and new refugees;
• Funding of municipal non-profit corporations, established or co-founded by the Region that aim to confront the problems stemming from the use of addictive substances (drugs);
• Conducting social research for the implementation of welfare programmes and social work issues;
• The determination of the conditions and procedures for exercising social work in all fields, as well as training students for social work during their internships;
• Licensing and revoking licenses to practice social work and keeping the relevant register;
• The exercise of powers relating to the Social Advisor (Law 2345/1995);
• Supervision of the Unit for the Care of Elderly and the Child Protection Agencies including the preparation and drafting of reports on similar proposals; and
• The implementation of programmes to protect mothers and preschool children.
• Ensuring gender equality through the Regional Committee for Gender Equality.

Local

Municipal authorities are responsible for:

• Supporting the social care of infants, children and the elderly with the establishment and operation of nurseries, orphanages, care centres, centres of entertainment for the elderly, nursing homes etc. and implementation of related social programmes;
• Issuing certifications of economic precariousness.
• Issuing decisions on social protection.
• Supporting vulnerable groups by providing health and mental health services, such as municipal clinics, centres for support and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, mental health centres, counselling support to victims of domestic violence and violence against persons and centres of drug prevention;
• Facilitating vulnerable groups through decreasing up to 50% of local taxes or fees, or promoting the total exemption of certain categories of their obligation to pay local taxation
• Supporting the homeless and the economically weak by granting them municipal land, providing them with social housing,  leasing real estate and/or  providing them with financial aid, sanitary living, etc.;
• Establishing 'social groceries' providing food, clothing, books, toys, household, etc. for citizens due to the current economic and financial crisis 
• Establishing Local Councils for Crime Prevention as consultative advisory bodies. They are formed by judges, police officers, sociologists and psychologists in order to develop an alternative anti-criminal decentralized policy, tailored to specific needs and demands of local communities, to develop programmes etc;
• The cooperation with local minor protection groups within the framework of the network for the prevention of juvenile criminality
• Implementing programmes or participating in actions for the social, economic and cultural integration of Roma, immigrants, refugees and returning expatriates;

• The establishment of local networks of solidarity and voluntary organisations;
• The supervision of charitable organisations and foundations as well as the approval of their budget and the monitoring of their receiving state grants or funding;
• The authorisation of individuals and charitable associations or unions aiming at child welfare as well as the authorisation of private care companies for elderly people suffering from incurable physical disabilities.
• The authorisation of public and private child day nurseries;
• Granting the “disability card", upon consulting the respective certification committee.
• The payment of allowances to disabled and other persons granted social protection; and
• Appointing a Board for the Welfare and Protection Fund for families with many children.

• Supervision of child protection in private institutions (private kindergartens);
• Function and responsibility of children's summer camps;
• Licensing of municipal and private childcare or nursery; and
• Deciding on local health conditions and measures on public health.
• The establishment of municipal police in order to ensure the smooth social life of the population and the proper functioning of cities;
• The licensing of slaughterhouses;
• The protection of the consumer through the establishment of consumer information agencies;
• The establishment of committees of conciliation of disputes between suppliers and consumers and the preservation of a consumer register.
• Running Community centres as the first point of contact between the citizens and the social services of the municipality.

Responsible ministries/bodies

Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Social Solidarity

Ministry of Interior

Sources

Decree 57/1973(OG A'143/14.07.1973).

Kontiadis, X., Apistoulas, D., Reform of social state and local self-government, Papazisi Publishers, Athens 2006 (in Greek).

Law 3463/2006 (OJ Α 114/30.6.2006) 'Code for Municipalities and Communities', Article 75 and 84 as amended by Kallikratis.

Law 3852/2010 (OJ Α 87/7.6.2010) 'Reorganisation of Local Government - Kallikratis  Programme',  Article 94 and 186.

Law 4445/2016 OJ Α236A/ 19/12/2016 “National Mechanism for the coordination, review and assessment of social cohesion and social integration policies and regulations on social solidarity"

Law 4368/2016 ( OJ  A21 Α΄/21-02-2016)

Open Society Institute, Territorial Consolidation Reforms in Europe, drafted by Pawel Swianiewicz, 2010, Budapest.