Greece Experiments with AI and Citizen Feedback in Public Administration Reform

In an effort to reform Greece’s public administration, government officials have announced the rollout of a new system for evaluating civil servants, as well as a large-scale initiative to gather citizen feedback on public

services.

The plan, grounded in legislation passed in 2022 (Law 4940/2022), was presented during a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday by Interior Minister Theodoros Livanios, Digital Governance Minister Dimitrios Papastergiou, and Deputy Interior Minister Paraskevi Charalambogianni.

The initiative marks a departure from the previous evaluation system, which had been criticized for its lack of rigor. In 2022, its final year of implementation, 98% of public employees were rated as “excellent” or “highly competent,” with only 284 receiving negative evaluations. The new framework, introduced in 2023, incorporates data analysis tools and artificial intelligence to assess performance more selectively. Of 166,350 evaluations submitted last year, just over 54,000 employees were initially categorized as high performers, though nearly 40,000 of those ratings were later rejected by AI screening tools. A further 15,259 cases remain under review by state oversight bodies, including the Supreme Council for Civil Personnel Selection (ASEP) and the National Transparency Authority.

Under the updated system, the number of employees labeled as low performers rose to 1,390—five times higher than under the old model. According to officials, the evaluation process is now based on defined performance goals and specific skill criteria, with machine learning tools used to increase the objectivity and consistency of assessments.

Government data suggests that the system is scaling up in 2024. Around 180,000 individual goals have already been recorded for the year, with measurable indicators reportedly applied to more than 90% of them. Preliminary figures indicate that only 11% of those goals have been surpassed so far. Officials estimate that the total number of evaluations this year could reach 189,000.

Alongside internal performance assessments, the government is also introducing a new mechanism for public feedback. Citizens across the country will be invited to evaluate government services—including those provided by ministries, regional authorities, and municipalities—through a structured online survey. The initiative, which is being described as the largest of its kind in Greece, aims to collect satisfaction data on a wide geographic and demographic scale.

#ENGLISH_EDITION
Keywords
Τυχαία Θέματα
Greece Experiments, Citizen Feedback,Public Administration Reform