By N. Bellos
A report by the EU’s Court of Auditors (ECA) this week noted that the bailout memorandums in Greece led to a significant improvement in the country’s fiscal situation, although their effectiveness in other sectors, such as all-important economic growth, has not had the anticipated result.
Certain structural reforms mandated in the three successive memorandums have also not generated the anticipated results.
The ECA was released on Thursday in Brussels.
Moreover, the Union’s top auditors also extended criticism towards the Commission, saying the EU’s executive did not have the necessary prior experience to manage such an endeavor, whereas the terms and conditions of successive bailout programs were not correctly prioritized. Additionally, the ECA report said the memorandum terms were not part of any long-strategy for the recession-battered Eurozone member.
The report stated that cooperation between creditors was, on the one hand, effective but otherwise conducted in an informal manner. At the same time, the Commission’s supervision of Greek authorities’ compliance with memorandum conditions were deemed as satisfactory.
One example cited by the ECA to qualify its assessment of the bailout programs’ short-comings is that Greece has still not fully returned to sovereign capital markets in order to cover its borrowing needs.
Additionally, the report said the bailout programs have not, to date, reduced the debt-to-GDP ratio – as a percentage of annual GDP – and with only limited positive effects on the country’s economic recovery.
