Posidonia flies Greek flag with famous blue and white logo at New York’s Times Square
As Greece continues its journey through the uncharted waters of fiscal uncertainty the country will be reprieved from the negative media spotlight next week as it prepares to host Posidonia, the world’s largest international maritime event and welcome to Athens’ waterfront Hellenikon Exhibition Centre leaders of the global sea transportation community from a record 87 nations and territories.
The famous colourful landmark NASDAQ tower at New York’s Times Square is already displaying the blue and white logo of Posidonia Shipping Exhibition 2010 in a gesture of support to the listed shipping companies as thousands of visitors and hundreds of international journalists converge to Athens for what Greek government officials describe as a lifeline to the country’s tourism sector and a platform to attract much needed investments.
Speaking at the prize giving ceremony of this year’s Posidonia Cup, a sailing regatta which has been heralding the official opening of Posidonia Exhibition for the past five editions, Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Development Georgios Pousseos said that Posidonia’s contribution to Greece’s MICE sector is vital both in terms of generating revenues for the local economy and as an image guardian for the country’s battered international reputation.
Posidonia Exhibition officials put the windfall to Athens’ tourism sector at around Euro 50 million, the estimated amount to be spent by the expected 10,000 international participants over the duration of the five-day event which officially opens its gates on Monday afternoon.
“Every two years Greece becomes the centre of international attention for all the right reasons as Posidonia’s appeal in the global shipping industry is unprecedented due to its unique breadth, scope, tremendous commercial potential and the media’s avid interest in the Greek shipping muscle, which is the mainstay of the country’s economy with a seven per cent contribution to the country’s GDP,” said Theodore Vokos, Project Manager, Posidonia.
Over 1,850 shipping companies from Greece and the rest of the world will participate in this year’s event which is the biggest in its 44 year history a tangible demonstration to the might of Greece’s shipping industry, which controls the world’s largest merchant fleet accounting for 15 per cent of the global tonnage and contributes an annual 13.5 billion to the country’s GDP.
