South Aegean

South Aegean

Περιφέρεια Νοτίου Αιγαίου
South Aegean Περιφέρεια Νοτίου Αιγαίου
Administrative region
	Flag
	Coordinates: 36°48′N 26°12′E / 36.8°N 26.2°E
Country	Greece
Decentralized Administration	Aegean
Capital	Ermoupoli
Largest city	Rhodes
Regional units	List Andros; Kalymnos; Karpathos-Kasos; Kea-Kythnos; Kos; Milos; Mykonos; Naxos; Paros; Rhodes; Syros; Thira; Tinos;
Government
• Regional governor	Giorgos Hatzimarkos (New Democracy)
Area
• Total	5,286 km2 (2,041 sq mi)
Population (2021)
• Total	324,542
• Density	61/km2 (160/sq mi)
GDP
• Total	€5.976 billion (2021)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
ISO 3166 code	GR-L
HDI (2019)	0.850; very high · 10th of 13
Website	www.pnai.gov.gr

The South Aegean (Greek: Περιφέρεια Νοτίου Αιγαίου, romanized: Periféria Notíou Eyéou, [periˈferia noˈtiu eˈʝeu]) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It consists of the Cyclades and Dodecanese island groups in the central and southeastern Aegean Sea.

Administration

The South Aegean region was established in the 1987 administrative reform. With the 2010 Kallikratis plan, its powers and authority were redefined and extended. Along with the North Aegean region, it is supervised by the Decentralized Administration of the Aegean based at Piraeus. The capital of the region is situated in Ermoupoli on the island of Syros. The administrative region includes 50 inhabited islands, including the popular tourism destinations of Mykonos, Santorini and Rhodes.^[4]

Until the Kallikratis reform, the region consisted of the two prefectures of the Cyclades (capital: Ermoupoli) and the Dodecanese (capital: Rhodes). Since 1 January 2011 it is divided into 13 regional units, formed around major islands:^[5]

Major communities

Demographics

The region was the only one in Greece to grow in population between 2011 and 2021, adding a total of 15,527 people (increase of 5%).^[1] It overtook Epirus and is presently the 9th largest region by population in Greece.^{[citation needed]}

Economy

The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the province was 6.4 billion € in 2018, accounting for 3.5% of Greek economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 22,400 € or 74% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 79% of the EU average. South Aegean is the region in Greece with the second highest GDP per capita.^[6]