Kyriakos Pierrakakis

Kyriakos Pierrakakis
Κυριάκος Πιερρακάκης
Pierrakakis in 2025
Minister for the National Economy and Finance
Incumbent
Assumed office
15 March 2025
Prime MinisterKyriakos Mitsotakis
Preceded byKostis Hatzidakis
President of the Eurogroup
Incumbent
Assumed office
12 December 2025
Preceded byPaschal Donohoe
Minister for Education, Religious Affairs and Sports
In office
27 June 2023 – 14 March 2025
Prime MinisterKyriakos Mitsotakis
Preceded byChristos Kittas [el] (as Minister for Education and Religious Affairs)
Succeeded bySofia Zacharaki
Minister of State and Minister for Digital Governance
In office
9 July 2019 – 26 May 2023
Prime MinisterKyriakos Mitsotakis
Succeeded byVassilios Skouris (as Minister of State)
Sokratis Katsikas [el] (as Minister for Digital Governance)
Member of the Hellenic Parliament
ConstituencyAthens A (2023–present)
Personal details
Born (1983-08-08) 8 August 1983 (age 42)
Athens, Greece
PartyNew Democracy (since 2016)
PASOK (2012–2016)
Children3
EducationLycée Léonin
Alma materAthens University of Economics and Business (BSc)
Harvard Kennedy School (MPP)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MTP)

Kyriakos Pierrakakis (Greek: Κυριάκος Πιερρακάκης; born 1983) is a Greek computer scientist and political economist who currently serves as Minister for the National Economy and Finance in the second cabinet of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.[1] He has also served as President of the Eurogroup since 12 December 2025, having been elected for a two-and-a-half-year term by his eurozone counterparts.[2]

He previously served as Minister for Digital Governance in the first Mitsotakis cabinet (2019–2023),[3] and as Minister for Education, Religious Affairs and Sports in the second Mitsotakis cabinet from June 2023 to March 2025.

He is a Member of the Hellenic Parliament for Athens since 2023.[4]

Early life and education

Born in 1983 in Athens, he grew up in Kato Patisia. He is the son of physician Stefanos Pierrakakis and lawyer Panagiota Stratakou, with ancestry from Areopoli and Krokees, Laconia. He is married and has three children. He graduated in 2001 from the Lycée Léonin in Patisia and studied computer science at the Athens University of Economics and Business until 2005. He is also a graduate of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government (Master in Public Policy, 2007) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Master in Technology Policy, 2009).[5]

In 2014, he married civil engineer Dimitra Moustakatou, with whom he had three children: Stefanos and twins Panagiota and Aikaterini. He speaks Greek, English, and French.[6]

Political career

After returning to Greece, he served as president of the Youth Institute, where he was actively involved in youth entrepreneurship issues. He also served as an advisor to then-Minister Anna Diamantopoulou at the Ministry of Development.

From 2015 to 2019, he served as research director of the independent, non-profit research organization "diaNEOsis", an independent non-profit non-partisan think tank. Pierrakakis produced research papers with a focus on economic growth and understanding the perceptions and beliefs among Greeks.[7]

Pierrakakis began his political career in center-left politics. He was elected member of the PASOK Political Committee in its 9th Congress in 2012 and in 2014 he was a candidate for the European Parliament. Pierrakakis was placed sixth on the Elia ballot with a total of 42.814 votes[8] During the New Democracy – PASOK coalition government he was member of the Greek negotiation delegation with the “Troika”[9] appointed by Minister Evangelos Venizelos.

The election of Kyriakos Mitsotakis as leader of New Democracy brought him closer to the party, and several months before the elections, he undertook the creation of a plan for the digital transformation of Greece. On 9 July 2019, he was sworn in as Minister of State and Digital Governance in the government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

In the national election of May 2023, he was a candidate for parliament in the electoral district of Athens, where he was elected first, receiving a total of 55,099 preference votes. He was re-elected in the June elections of the same year.

Minister for Digital Governance

On 9 July 2019, he was appointed Minister of State and Digital Governance by Kyriakos Mitsotakis. During his tenure, Pierrakakis drove a major digital transformation of Greece’s public services. His initiatives, including the development of gov.gr, Greece’s integrated platform for government services, the Gov.gr Wallet app for digital IDs and driving licenses, and the MyHealth app for electronic healthcare records, contributed to a 17.5% annual increase in the digitalization of public services for businesses and citizens alike.

Minister of Education

Since his appointment as Minister of Education in July 2023, Pierrakakis has led legislative reform in Greece's education sector. This includes the passage of a bill that establishes a legal framework for the operation of private foreign universities in the country, as well as the creation of a digital educational portal and a digital tutoring system.[10]

Primary – Secondary Education

During the 2024-2025 school year, daily school life was upgraded with:

  • the appointment of 10,000 permanent teachers;[11]
  • completion of the installation of 36,264 interactive whiteboards in all classrooms from 5th grade elementary through 3rd grade high school;[12]
  • integration of Active Citizen Actions into the educational process. Indeed, Greece became the first country to align its curriculum with the 17 UN sustainable development goals;[13]
  • establishment of new school operation regulations providing for stricter pedagogical and disciplinary measures.[14]

With Law 5128/2024, the “Digital Tutoring” was established, through which both synchronous and asynchronous distance learning is provided for subjects examined in national exams, while asynchronous distance education will be provided for all subjects from 5th grade elementary and above. Additionally, career guidance was strengthened, as through the “Digital School” application a pre-formatted questionnaire will be available, as well as the possibility of free individual online sessions. Furthermore, “Autonomous Junior High classes in remote – mountainous areas” were established,[15] an initiative that brought three teachers to border areas, such as Gavdos, whose children typically followed private education until now.

Starting from the 2024-2025 school year, reading complete literary works was integrated into Literature classes, instead of excerpted texts as had been the case until now. In the same framework of promoting reading, the eVivlio application was implemented, the first application giving students access to dozens of educational and literary books in audio format (audiobooks). Procedures for establishing multiple book choice were also promoted and the Additional Digital Handbook for Computer Science in all three grades of junior high school was implemented.[16]

Under Pierrakakis, the introduction of the International Baccalaureate (IB) in public Model schools nationwide was launched, starting September 2026.[17] Simultaneously, the “Marietta Giannakou” program began, the largest school infrastructure upgrade program in recent decades, worth 350 million euros with prospects for further expansion through private sector contribution. Finally, with law 5174/2025, Public Onassis Schools were established . These are 22 schools (11 junior high schools and 11 general high schools), which with the support of the Onassis Foundation will operate in areas of the country facing social and economic challenges and will give thousands of male and female students the tools, knowledge, and environment they need to develop their skills.[18]

Minister of National Economy and Finance

On 15 March 2025, Kyriakos Pierrakakis assumed the Ministry of National Economy and Finance, emphasizing maintaining fiscal stability, accelerating digitization of the tax system, and reducing bureaucracy.

On 22 April 2025, Greece announced a primary surplus of 4.8% and overall surplus of 1.3% for 2024. On the same day, Pierrakakis announced permanent support measures for families living in rental housing, for students and pensioners, as well as additional strengthening of the Public Investment Program with 500 million euros annually.

President of the Eurogroup

On 11 December 2025, Pierrakakis was elected president of the Eurogroup.[19][20] In early 2026, he views positively the decision made by the six largest EU countries to accelerate market integration.[21]

Publications

  • "Work Values in Politics: The European Union Debt Crisis as a Case Study" (2019, co-authored with Anna Diamantopoulou)[22]

References

  1. ^ "Greece's New Prime Minister Sworn in, Announces Cabinet". GTP Headlines. 26 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Kyriakos Pierrakakis elected Eurogroup President". Brussels: General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union. 11 December 2025. Retrieved 11 December 2025.
  3. ^ "Full list of the First Kyriakos Mitsotakis Cabinet". eKathimerini.
  4. ^ "Electoral District of Athens A: National elections – June 2023". ekloges.ypes.gr. Archived from the original on 4 January 2025. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  5. ^ "Kyriakos Pierrakakis CV".
  6. ^ "Kyriakos Pierrakakis – ICEGOV 2024". www.icegov.org. Archived from the original on 31 May 2024. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  7. ^ "Athens Investment Forum Keynote Speakers". Investment Forum. Archived from the original on 10 July 2021.
  8. ^ "Euroelections May 2014". ekloges-prev.singularlogic.eu. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Preparations for troika talks in Paris gather pace". eKathimerini.
  10. ^ Giannou, Christine (17 May 2024). "Digital School: Presented today by Mitsotakis and Pierrakakis". ProtoThema English. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  11. ^ "ΥΠΟΥΡΓΕΙΟ ΠΑΙΔΕΙΑΣ ΘΡΗΣΚΕΥΜΑΤΩΝ & ΑΘΛΗΤΙΣΜΟΥ - 04-07-24 10.000 νέοι μόνιμοι διορισμοί στη δημόσια Παιδεία". www-minedu-gov-gr.translate.goog. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  12. ^ "Πιερρακάκης: Από τη νέα σχολική χρονιά θα λειτουργήσουν διαδραστικοί πίνακες σε όλες τις αίθουσες". ProtoThema (in Greek). 18 April 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  13. ^ "Εφαρμογή του Προγράμματος Σπουδών «Δράσεις Ενεργού". www.esos.gr (in Greek). 9 December 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  14. ^ "Υπουργείο Παιδείας: Ένα νέο Πρόγραμμα Σπουδών στο Νηπιαγωγείο, το Δημοτικό, το Γυμνάσιο και το Λύκειο". Alfavita (in Greek). Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  15. ^ "Μητσοτάκης και Πιερρακάκης "συνδέθηκαν" στην αυτόνομη ψηφιακή τάξη του Γυμνασίου Γαύδου - Dnews". Dnews (in Greek). 13 September 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  16. ^ "ΥΠΟΥΡΓΕΙΟ ΠΑΙΔΕΙΑΣ ΘΡΗΣΚΕΥΜΑΤΩΝ & ΑΘΛΗΤΙΣΜΟΥ - 16-09-24 Διαθέσιμο το Πρόσθετο Ψηφιακό Εγχειρίδιο για το μάθημα της Πληροφορικής Γυμνασίου". www-minedu-gov-gr.translate.goog. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  17. ^ "Πιερρακάκης: IB και στα δημόσια σχολεία – Πιλοτική εφαρμογή σε πέντε πρότυπα από το 2026". Η ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ (in Greek). 3 December 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  18. ^ "Δημόσια Ωνάσεια Σχολεία: Ποια και σε ποιες περιοχές θα είναι τα 22 δημόσια γυμνάσια και λύκεια - Πώς θα εισάγονται οι μαθητές | LiFO". www.lifo.gr (in Greek). 20 January 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  19. ^ "In stunning reversal for Europe, Greek finance minister elected as Eurogroup president". AP News. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  20. ^ Moller-Nielsen, Thomas (12 December 2025). "Greece's Pierrakakis clinches Eurogroup presidency | Euractiv". Euractiv. Archived from the original on 11 December 2025. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  21. ^ Thomas Moller-Nielsen: Franco-German-led ‘E6’ format will be ‘temporary’, says Eurogroup president. Euractiv, 2026-02-17.
  22. ^ Diamantopoulou, Anna; Pierrakakis, Kyriakos (2019). "Work Values in Politics: The European Union Debt Crisis as a Case Study". The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 682: 222–233. doi:10.1177/0002716219826026. S2CID 150730304.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyriakos_Pierrakakis