NGO registry to include staff and partners, says gov’t spokesman

A draft law provision setting up a special registry for all non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will help "control the activities of hundreds of NGOs operating in Greece," government spokesman Stelios Petsas told reporters on Tuesday.

The provision is included in a bill that has been submitted to Parliament.

Petsas said the registry will include members, staff and partners of organizations, "so there is transparency and responsibility," noting that many NGOs "may have helped decisively" in managing the issue of migration, "but others operated in a faulty and parasitic manner."

Sources from the prime minister's office said that already registered NGOs will have to register individual members, personnel and partners within three months.

The registry will be overseen by a specially appointed secretary.

Earlier legislation of 2016 and 2018 setting up such a registry for both Greek and foreign NGOs did not include regulations for registration and certification of official staff, they said.

[ANA-MPA]