Environment Minister Tina Birbili on Wednesday told an Economist conference on the issue of climate change that the Greek environment ministry's development programme provides for energy-sector investments amounting to 44 billion euros that are expected to create 200,000 new jobs.

The minister said the programme was the strategic plan presented to employers and trade unions in the summer and is comprised of four main lines of action: transition to a low-emission economy, protection of biodiversity with sustainable management of natural resources, improved quality of life with urban improvements and enhanced environmental governance.

It will include investments in new power plants, renewable energy sources, networks, energy conservation measures and improving energy-efficiency in buildings. Birbili stressed that the country's construction sector was called to meet the challenge of renovating the country's buildings in order to conserve energy.

"Support of agricultural development through subsidies, of the mass tourism model and [support of economic growth] by construction can no longer continue. They have already had bad repercussions for the country," she underlined.

Concerning the climate change conference in Cancun, Mexico Birbili said that all the signs pointed to the problem being postponed for another year since the U.S. and the developing economies were not ready to agree to binding targets and the EU could not increase its commitments unless there was a commitment from the U.S. and China.

The minister also stressed that green development was a lever for exiting the economic crisis, noting that one sixth of economic support packages in 2008-2009 - roughly one trillion dollars - were directed toward green projects.