Central Greece region
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Central Greece

Ranks 1st in wind power

Leader in food processing and light manufacturing

The second largest region in terms of land area, Central Greece is home to much of the country’s light industry and has excellent transport links to Greece’s major city and capital, Athens, to its south.

Extending from the high mountains in the centre of the country to the lowlands north of Attica, Central Greece has a diversified geography and economy.

Light manufacturing and food processing facilities dominate economic activity in the sub-region of Boeotia in the southeast, which is also home to the region’s growing investments in renewable energy. In 2019, Central Greece topped the ranks in terms in terms of installed wind energy capacity, totalling 1,311 MW.

In the west of the region, pastoralism supports the local rural economy, but tourism also plays a significant and growing role. The ancient site of Delphi is one of Greece’s most visited archaeological sites, while ski centres near the towns of Arachova and Karpenissi offer winter tourism opportunities particularly for visitors from relatively nearby Athens.

The region is also a producer of food and other primary materials from timber to mineral resources.

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Key Facts
Central Greece

Leader in food processing and other light manufacturing

Largest wind power producer in Greece

Home to popular archaeological site of Delphi

Agri-Food

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Energy

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Tourism

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Regional Opportunities

Agri-Food

Energy

Tourism

Home to food processing facilities of leading F&B companies.

The area of Boeotia in the southeast corner of the region of Central Greece is the site of food processing and light manufacturing that, in part, serves the city of Athens some 50 kilometres away. Leading foreign multinationals like Italy’s Barilla, Switzerland’s Nestle and The Coca-Cola Company maintain factories in the area, as do many Greek industrial producers. The area is also a major food producing region that, likewise, serves the Athens market and exports abroad. Further west, in the mountains of Central Greece, pastoralism helps support a local food industry of meats and dairy products.

Learn more about Agri-Food in Greece

The region of Central Greece is home to roughly one third of the country’s wind farms.

The eastern lowlands of Central Greece are punctuated by rolling hills and short mountain peaks that provide locations to site windmills for power generation. According to the Hellenic Wind Energy Association, Central Greece has 1,311 MW of installed wind capacity, more than double that of any other region in Greece. In 2019, Central Greece attracted almost 37% of wind farm investments.

Learn more about Energy in Greece

The archaeological site of Delphi is one of Greece’s Top 10 tourist attractions.

According to Greece’s national statistics agency, Delphi is the sixth most popular tourist destination in the country, drawing more than 300,000 visitors a year. Home to the mountains and forests of the Pindos range, Central Greece also boasts a number of alternative tourism experiences, ranging from ski centres to thermal springs that are gradually being developed.

Learn more about Tourism in Greece

Central Greece
In Numbers

Central Greece has been attracting foreign investment in food processing and renewable energy projects, helping to boost growth.

  • €8,767 million

    GDP in 2018, in current prices

  • €15,800

    Per capita GDP in 2018, in current prices

  • 1st

    Ranking in Greece in terms of installed wind energy capacity in 2019 (HWEA)

  • 10.4%

    Contribution out of total nights spent in Greece by visitors in hotels and campsites in 2018

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Central Greece Demographics

The eastern part of Central Greece has drawn working-age people from the mountains in the west.

Central Greece is the country’s second biggest region in terms of land area (15,561 square kilometres) but only 8th of 13 in terms of population. Since the end of the Second World War, the region has seen a shift in its population with many younger workers abandoning the rural mountains in the west in favour of better opportunities in the cities. Central Greece itself has few metropolitan centres – the biggest city is Lamia with just over 100,000 residents – and none that rank among Greece’s 10 largest.

  • 555,960

    Population (2019)

  • 5.18%

    Share of Greek population (2019)

  • 23.6%

    Tertiary Educational Attainment of population aged between 25-64 (2018)

  • 36/km2

    Population Density (2018)

Sources: Eurostat, Hellenic Statistical Authority, European Commission, Regional Governments, SETE, Enterprise Greece, and HWEA

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