What does Europe need to do to recover from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic? And, what are the implications of the crisis for Greece’s economy, still vulnerable after the debt crisis?

This panel will explore the challenges, scenarios and implications of action taken at the European level and how these resonate in terms of domestic strategies in one of the euro-zone’s still most critical economies. What can we expect of the recovery?

Paul De Grauwe (@pdegrauwe) is John Paulson Chair in European Political Economy European Institute. Prior to joining LSE, Paul De Grauwe was Professor of International Economics at the University of Leuven, Belgium. He was a member of the Belgian parliament from 1991 to 2003

Simeon Djankov (@SimeonDjankov) is Research Fellow, Financial Markets Group, LSE. He was deputy prime minister and minister of finance of Bulgaria from 2009 to 2013. Prior to his cabinet appointment, Djankov was chief economist of the finance and private sector vice presidency of the World Bank.

Panos Tsakloglou is a Professor in the Athens University of Economics and Business, Greece and Visiting Professor at the Hellenic Observatory, LSE. His research focuses on questions related to the redistributive role of the state (inequality, poverty, social exclusion, taxation and transfers in kind) and the labour market. During the period 2012-2014 he was Chairman of the Greek Government’s Council of Economic Advisors and member of the EU Economic and Financial Committee (EFC) and Eurogroup Working Group (EWG) as well as alternate member of Ecofin and Eurogroup. He has also been Social Policy advisor to Prime Ministers G. Papandreou (2010-2011) and L. Papademos (2011-2012) and a member of the EU Economic Policy Committee (EPC, 2010-2011).

Miranda Xafa (@MXafa) started her career as an economist at the International Monetary Fund and moved on to senior positions in government and in the financial sector in Athens and London. She served as chief economic advisor to Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis in 1991-93 and worked as a market analyst for Salomon Brothers/Citigroup in London for a decade before returning to Washington to serve as a member of the IMF Executive Board in 2004-09. She is currently the CEO of E.F. Consulting Ltd and a senior scholar at the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).

Kevin Featherstone is Eleftherios Venizelos Professor in Contemporary Greek Studies and Professor in European Politics and the Director of the Hellenic Observatory. 

This event is part of LSE's public event series - COVID-19: The Policy Response.

COVID-19 represents an enormous challenge for the social sciences to help governments and non-governmental organisations respond to the economic and societal consequences of the pandemic. Part of LSE's response to this challenge is a series of online public events that will take place over the Summer Term.

Why not visit the School of Public Policy COVID-19 Resource Centre.

This event in the series has been organised by the Hellenic Observatory and the National Bank of Greece.

The next event in this series will take place at 4.30pm on 11 May on Strategic Leadership in the Time of COVID-19.

The Hellenic Observatory (@HO_LSE) is internationally recognised as one of the premier research centres on contemporary Greece and Cyprus. It engages in a range of activities, including developing and supporting academic and policy-related research; organisation of conferences, seminars and workshops; academic exchange through visiting fellowships and internships; as well as teaching at the graduate level through LSE's European Institute.

Backed by its 179-year participation in the country's economic and social life, NBG is one of the leading Greek financial organisations, with strong tradition and noteworthy contribution to the economic and social transformation of Greece. The Bank’s broad customer base, respected brand name, strong market share in deposits and enhanced capital adequacy ratios secure it with the liquidity needed to finance Greek businesses and reflect the long-standing relationship of trust it enjoys with its clientele. 

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSECOVID19

Podcast, Video & Slides

A podcast of this event is available to download from Assessing the Economic Impact of COVID-19.

A video of this event is available to watch at Assessing the Economic Impact of COVID-19.

A PowerPoint presentation is available to download at Assessing the Economic Impact of COVID-19 (pdf).

Podcasts and videos of many LSE events can be found at the LSE Public Lectures and Events: podcasts and videos channel.