Introduction: Institutions and economy

The instability and the constant changes that characterized the period 1923-40 left their mark in many ways on the economic development of the country. In the interior, overwhelming problems were created by population concentration, the impact of agricultural reform, the emergence of new ideologies and parties, and the pressure to resettle 1.5 million refugees. To tackle such problems, new initiatives were organized within the institutional framework, like relieving the homeless and supporting industry etc. However, the measures taken were mostly sporadic, fragmentary and lacking in co-ordination. On the other hand it could be argued that such an unfavourable series of events and the wealth of particular problems they caused did not allow any margin for radical innovations. Either way, it is in this period that the roots of the economic policies and the institutional framework of modern Greece can be traced.