The e-charter party was announced from the port of Lavrio by the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, Vassilis Kikilias. It is a modern digital application that allows the electronic registration and management of charter parties in real time, without the need for physical presence at the services.
Mr. Kikilias characterized today as a very important day for the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, noting that “with the e-charter party, people are given the opportunity not to be inconvenienced, not to need a physical presence at services, constant submission of documents and involvement in a whirlwind of bureaucracy and waiting. We must be competitive compared to the other Mediterranean countries regarding our tourism product. Yachting and recreational vessels are a very important part of this. It is a decisive milestone for the industry, for professionals, but ultimately for the Greeks, Greek families and Greek society,” while he emphasized that activity in a port, such as that of Lavrio, gives life to the city, creates revenue and supports a range of professional sectors, from catering and food service establishments to logistics and supplies. “All families live off of this,” he noted characteristically, linking the operation of the e-charter party to the real economy and the daily lives of citizens.
Mr. Kikilias thanked the Ministry of National Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Digital Governance and, mainly, the service officials of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy and the executives of the Hellenic Coast Guard, whom he described as the “soul of the effort.” “Bravo for their initiative, bravo for the idea which we managed to implement,” he said characteristically, concluding that the start of the productive operation of the application is scheduled to take place very soon, while at the same time, given the changes taking place and in order to ensure a smooth transition to the new regime, a deadline until June 30 will be given for the parallel maintenance of the existing procedure alongside the digital one.
The President of the Association of Owners of Tourist Professional Vessels Without Crew, Efthymios Bibis, stated in his address: “We are happy to be here today, for a very important application for the maritime tourism sector. We have reached today, where we have an application that meets the needs and will greatly help the sector. It is not only important because it will reduce bureaucracy, in combination with the monthly departure, but because we will finally acquire a database.”
The President of the Union of Owners of Greek Tourism Vessels, Filippos Venetopoulos, similarly stated in his address: “The digital charter party is a tool that is very welcome for us. I think it will make operations much smoother for all shipowners and all organizations. On behalf of the Board of Directors of EPEST and our members, we thank you for having us as interlocutors again.”
Source: YNANP
