Spanakis on the National Mechanism for the Protection of Companion Animals During Natural Disasters: “We are protecting more than 1,525,000 companion animals”

At the presentation of the National Mechanism for the Protection of Companion Animals during Natural Disasters, which took place at the Animal Rescue Center at the Galatsi Olympic Facilities, in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Deputy Minister of the Interior Vasilis Spanakis attended and delivered remarks.

During his speech, Mr. Spanakis highlighted the importance of cooperation between the relevant ministries and local governments with the Special Secretariat for the Protection of Companion Animals, as well as with volunteer groups, emphasizing that “This specific project must be geographically distributed to every corner of the country, based on the unique characteristics of each region.”

The Deputy Minister of the Interior stated that “A government commitment to measures for preventing natural disasters is being put into action. Starting in 2026, the protection of companion animals will no longer be just words, but will become an official government commitment. This affects more than 1,525,000 companion animals, 385,000 of which are strays.”

Mr. Spanakis referred to the innovations of the National Plan and, specifically, the specialized animal rescue teams, the Coordination Center with the five-digit number 10400 for animal rescue and extrication, the relevant operational protocols, the inclusion of animals in the 112 emergency number, the Unified Crisis Management Coordination Center (E.S.K.E.D.I.K.), in Civil Protection Plans at the municipal and regional levels, as well as in the training of firefighters and forest firefighters in animal rescue and first aid. At the same time, he emphasized that “We want our preventive measures to cover not only companion animals, but also equines and livestock. Our government’s concern extends to all animals, and this is the central pillar of our policy.”

In closing, he said: “All of this comes on top of a measure by the Ministry of the Interior that amounts to a tripling of funding to municipalities for companion animals, in order to implement specific and targeted policies.”

Finally, Mr. Spanakis, referring to the 50 million euros allocated by the Ministry of the Interior for preventive fire protection measures aimed at averting natural disasters, emphasized that: “All of this is just the beginning, because we have a lot of work to do in the face of the climate crisis and the growing and increasingly specific needs.”