Evidence-based cultural policies toward sustainable development: the case of Greece

This paper aims to assess the impact of cultural heritage on Greek economic development. An input-output model approach is used to estimate a set of multipliers that measure the direct, indirect and induced (broader) macroeconomic impact of income, output, value added and employment of cultural heritage on economic growth. The multipliers of product, gross value added, income and employment are calculated, based on which the importance of the cultural heritage sector for the Greek economy is identified. Three different impact scenarios were applied to this analysis. The main finding of the study is the importance of the cultural heritage sector in conjunction with its interconnection with the tourism sector. The study provides a policy analysis framework for targeted structural economic interventions that can be implemented to improve the operational efficiency of the cultural sector in Greece.