Greece

Greece is a European country that possesses a strong democratic government, and a developing economy. The concept of democracy was invented in ancient Athens, Greece, where for the first time in history citizens were able to choose the public officials.

Today, Greece is a parliamentary republic guided by a democratic constitution. The president is the head of the state, while the prime minister is the head of the Greek government. The president of Greece, who is the chief of the state, is elected by the parliament every five years and can serve a maximum of two terms. A two-thirds majority is required for the election of the president. The Greek President has limited powers and has the ultimate responsibility of overseeing that the constitutional authority guides the government.

The Greek Prime Minister, who is the head of government, is elected by the parliament after the national elections that decide the make-up of the parliament. There is no limit on how many terms the prime minister can serve. The Parliament of Greece consists of 300 members elected by direct vote of the people to four year terms. The party that holds the majority in the parliament elects the Prime Minister and he/she is usually the leader of that political party.

The terrain of the mainland of Greece is mostly mountainous while its seas are sprinkled with more than 2000 islands.
The per capita income is somewhat lower than other European countries. Home ownership is about 80% which allows the Greek citizens a fairly comfortable life style. It should be noted that home owners pay no direct tax for their dwellings.

Greece has been a seafaring nation since the days when the Athenian dominance at sea allowed for the extraordinary cultural development we admire today. This tradition has continued through the history, with the Greek merchant fleet being always one of the largest ones world-wide.