THE RISE AND THE FALL OF THE GREEK ECONOMY DURING THE 1950-2017 PERIOD AND THE ISSUE OF TOURISM - SOME LESSONS FOR MODERN ECONOMIES

Abstract

This paper analyses in brief Greek economy during the 1950-2017 period. The paper analyses the reasons that lead to the economic development (1950-1980) and the reasons that were responsible for the period of economic and systemic inconsistencies which followed, that lead, at first, to economic stagnation, then to the deterioration of the macroeconomic figures of the Greek economy during the 1981-2009, and finally, to the era of the memoranda (2010-17), which is related to the current deep economic recession that the Greek society faces. Then the paper analyses the main economic characteristics of tourism in Greece and explains why tourism is an important aspect of the Greek economy and why it can play a significant role as regards to the recovery of the Greek economy since 2010 and afterwards.