According to a report that was released recently by Australian Greek Welfare Society (AGWS) more than 8,000 Greeks have migrated permanently to Victoria since 2010, following the break out of an unprecedented economic crisis.

In an article on the findings of this important report that was based on research conducted by Dr Constantine Tsigas, Neos Kosmos newspaper highlights the difficulties faced by Greek migrants.

“The promising Lucky Country is here to welcome their dreams and meet their expectations. Only after they set foot into Australian reality do they realize they may have decided to set sail in a sea of loneliness and frustration,” states the article, noting that 60% of the migrants are Greek Australians who had previously returned to Greece with their families, yet were forced to go back to Australia due to the economic crisis.

Among other things, the report shows that difficulties for Greek migrants arise across a range of areas during the pre-migration planning and preparation stage. According to the article, “the challenges new Greek migrants face on arrival vary depending on the thoroughness of their pre-migration preparation, financial resources available, differences on visa stream, the presence of family, relatives or friends, the duration and quality of support they provide, awareness of and access to formal support services, and the capacity of those services to respond sensitively and effectively.”

“The study reinforced that this group of people are mostly university educated, intellectually adept, articulate, confident and in search of opportunities to unleash their talent and drive to achieve. They present a unique human capital for Victoria’s Australian Greek community and the general Australian community, which if harnessed appropriately will bring significant benefits to Australia,” AGWS CEO Ms Messimeri said.