Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis used International Women’s Day on Sunday to defend his government’s record on gender equality, pointing to a set of policy measures introduced since 2019 while calling for further progress.

In a social media post, Mitsotakis wrote that the day should serve as an annual reckoning — a chance to measure how far equality has actually penetrated everyday life, rather than simply existing on paper. That means, he said, dismantling persistent barriers, creating genuine opportunities in the workplace, increasing women’s representation in decision-making, and showing zero tolerance for gender-based violence.

What the Government Says It Has Done

Since New Democracy came to power in 2019, Mitsotakis said, female unemployment has been cut in half and women’s employment has risen by 10 percentage points. Mothers are now entitled to a birth benefit of up to 3,500 euros and nine months of parental leave in both the public and private sectors. Tax relief per child has been introduced, along with exemptions on presumptive income assessments — a Greek tax mechanism that sets a household’s minimum taxable income based on assets and living standards rather than declared earnings. The number of state-funded nurseries and after-school activity centers has also grown.

On workplace equality, the government has rolled out diversity training for tens of thousands of civil servants and corporate executives, and introduced an “equality seal” — a certification for companies that can demonstrate equal pay, equal opportunity, work-life balance policies, and functioning anti-harassment measures.

Free nationwide screenings for breast and cervical cancer are also now available, a preventive health measure the prime minister described as life-saving.

The Harder Numbers

The Greek PM went on to talk about the issue of domestic violence, a persistent problem in Greece that has drawn sustained criticism from rights organizations.

Mitsotakis cited the current infrastructure: 67 shelters and support centers nationwide, a dedicated helpline — SOS 15900 — that received 6,700 calls in 2025 alone, 63 domestic violence units within the police force, and a “Panic Button” app being installed on around 5,000 women’s phones each year.

The Bigger Picture

Mitsotakis acknowledged the limits of his own scorecard. Greece, he noted, is one of only 14 countries in the world that guarantee full legal equality between men and women — a genuine distinction — but he stopped short of claiming the work is done. What he called achievements, he framed as a floor rather than a ceiling: evidence that change is possible, and pressure to push further.