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About us

Who We Are

Learn about our mission, our charter and principles, and who we are.

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How we work

See what triggers an intervention and how supply and logistics allow our teams to respond quickly.

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How we're run

Discover our governance and what it means to be an association. Find a quick visual guide to our offices around the world.

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Reports and financials

Read through our annual financial and activity reports, and find out about where our funds come from and how they are spent.

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What we do

Médecins Sans Frontières brings medical humanitarian assistance to victims of conflict, natural disasters, epidemics or healthcare exclusion.

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Where we work

In more than 70 countries, Médecins Sans Frontières provides medical humanitarian assistance to save lives and ease the suffering of people in crisis situations.

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MSF Websites

A Global Network
Our offices around the world
Our offices around the world
Other Sites
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MSF Association

Our staff “own” and manage MSF, making sure that we stay true to our mission and principles, through the MSF Associations.

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Access Campaign

We set up the MSF Access Campaign in 1999 to push for access to, and the development of, life-saving and life-prolonging medicines, diagnostic tests and vaccines for people in our programmes and beyond.

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Patient blogs

Hear directly from the inspirational people we help as they talk about their experiences dealing with often neglected, life-threatening diseases.

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CRASH

Based in Paris, CRASH conducts and directs studies and analysis of MSF actions. They participate in internal training sessions and assessment missions in the field.

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UREPH

Based in Geneva, UREPH (or Research Unit) aims to improve the way MSF projects are implemented in the field and to participate in critical thinking on humanitarian and medical action.

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ARHP

Based in Barcelona, ARHP documents and reflects on the operational challenges and dilemmas faced by the MSF field teams.

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MSF Analysis

Based in Brussels, MSF Analysis intends to stimulate reflection and debate on humanitarian topics organised around the themes of migration, refugees, aid access, health policy and the environment in which aid operates.

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MSF Supply

This logistical and supply centre in Brussels provides storage of and delivers medical equipment, logistics and drugs for international purchases for MSF missions.

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MSF Logistique

This supply and logistics centre in Bordeaux, France, provides warehousing and delivery of medical equipment, logistics and drugs for international purchases for MSF missions.

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Amsterdam Procurement Unit

This logistical centre in Amsterdam purchases, tests, and stores equipment including vehicles, communications material, power supplies, water-processing facilities and nutritional supplements.

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Southern Africa Medical Unit

SAMU provides strategic, clinical and implementation support to various MSF projects with medical activities related to HIV and TB. This medical unit is based in Cape Town, South Africa.

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Brazilian Medical Unit

BRAMU specialises in neglected tropical diseases, such as dengue and Chagas, and other infectious diseases. This medical unit is based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

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MSF Medical Guidelines

Our medical guidelines are based on scientific data collected from MSF’s experiences, the World Health Organization (WHO), other renowned international medical institutions, and medical and scientific journals.

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Manson Unit

The Manson Unit is a London, UK-based team of medical specialists who provide medical and technical support, and conduct research for MSF.

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Epicentre

Providing epidemiological expertise to underpin our operations, conducting research and training to support our goal of providing medical aid in areas where people are affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or excluded from health care.

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Evaluation Units

Evaluation Units have been established in Vienna, Stockholm, and Paris, assessing the potential and limitations of medical humanitarian action, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of our medical humanitarian work.

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LGBTQI+ Inclusion in Health Settings

MSF works with LGBTQI+ populations in many settings over the last 25-30 years. LGBTQI+ people face healthcare disparities with limited access to care and higher disease rates than the general population.

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LUXOR

The Luxembourg Operational Research (LuxOR) unit coordinates field research projects and operational research training, and provides support for documentation activities and routine data collection.

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MSF Academy for Healthcare

To upskill and provide training to locally-hired MSF staff in several countries, MSF has created the MSF Academy for Healthcare.

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Humanitarian Law

This Guide explains the terms, concepts, and rules of humanitarian law in accessible and reader-friendly alphabetical entries.

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MSF Paediatric Days

The MSF Paediatric Days is an event for paediatric field staff, policy makers and academia to exchange ideas, align efforts, inspire and share frontline research to advance urgent paediatric issues of direct concern for the humanitarian field.

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MSF Foundation

The MSF Foundation aims to create a fertile arena for logistics and medical knowledge-sharing to meet the needs of MSF and the humanitarian sector as a whole.

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DNDi

A collaborative, patients’ needs-driven, non-profit drug research and development organisation that is developing new treatments for neglected diseases, founded in 2003 by seven organisations from around the world.

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MSF emergency clinic after Moria fire

Greece

War in Gaza:: find out how we're responding
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Asylum seekers and refugees continue to arrive in Greece in search of safety, only to find themselves stranded indefinitely in the country.

Since the EU-Turkey deal in March 2016, migrants and refugees previously in transit through the Greek islands have been trapped for an indeterminate time in Reception and Identification Centres and Closed Controlled Access Centres. 

Our teams provides medical and mental healthcare to migrants in Athens and on the Greek islands of Lesvos and Samos. Our activities include sexual and reproductive healthcare, treating chronic diseases and providing care for survivors of sexual violence, psychological support and health promotion activities. On the islands of Lesvos and Samos we also provide emergency medical assistance to people in distress once they arrive by boat from Türkiye.

Our teams on Lesvos and Samos have reported overwhelming numbers of people suffering from serious mental health conditions while being contained on the islands. We have made repeated calls on the European Union and the Greek authorities to completely change their approach to migration, which is causing avoidable harm to the health and wellbeing of asylum seekers, refugees and migrants.
 

Our activities in 2023 in Greece

Data and information from the International Activity Report 2023.

204

204

staff in 2023 (full-time equivalent)

€9.5 M

9.5M

expenditure in 2023

1991

1991

Year MSF first worked in the country
MSF in Greece in 2023 Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) assists migrants, refugees and asylum seekers arriving in Greece, many of whom have endured trauma in their home countries, on their journeys or at European borders.
Greece IAR map 2023

In 2023, restrictive European Union and Greek migration policies continued to take a severe toll on the physical and mental health of people seeking safety in Europe. Many of those arriving in Greece, whether by sea or land, were reportedly pushed back or placed in Closed Controlled Access Centres (CCACs) and later released into the country with little to no assistance.

Throughout 2023, our teams in Greece documented people’s reports of degrading treatment, including physical violence at sea or on arrival on the islands of Samos and Lesbos. The dire humanitarian situation was compounded as more and more people arriving were placed inside CCACs, and the majority were operating beyond their capacity. As a result, there was a lack of basic items such as bed covers, food, water, and hygiene supplies, and services, resulting in various avoidable health conditions, including respiratory and skin infections. The conditions also further impacted people’s mental health.

Our teams continued to provide timely and essential medical and psychological assistance to people on arrival, inside camps, and within the community. We run day centres and/or mobile clinics in Athens and on Lesbos and Samos, as well as providing emergency medical assistance for new arrivals. Our comprehensive response includes general healthcare, mental health support, and sexual and reproductive health services.

Our teams also treat patients with infectious and non-communicable diseases, and victims and survivors of sexual violence and torture. To ensure that people receive the necessary support, our multidisciplinary approach also comprises health promotion, intercultural mediation, and social and legal services.

During the year, MSF teams offered emergency medical and psychological first aid to thousands of people upon disembarkation on Lesbos and Samos, and organised hospital referrals for those needing further care. Finally, following massive floods in the region of Thessaly, our teams provided assistance to people affected.

Read more: https://www.msf.org/plain-sight-migration-policies-greek-sea-borders

 

in 2022

22,500

22,5

outpatient consultations

7,460

7,46

individual mental health consultations

820

82

people treated for sexual violence

45

45

survivors of torture treated
 
Greece

More than 60 percent of the medical problems faced by detained migrants in Evros, Greece, caused by inhumane living and hygiene conditions

Press Release 15 Jun 2011
 
Greece

I live in hell and all I see is nightmares

Voices from the Field 4 Feb 2011
 
Greece

Immediate action needed to improve unbearable living conditions in detention facilities in Evros, Greece

Press Release 26 Jan 2011
 
Greece

Critical situation for migrants and asylum seekers in detention facilities in Evros region, Greece

Press Release 13 Dec 2010
 
Democratic Republic of Congo

Thousands of displaced civilians in DRC trapped by conflict, wounded unable to reach hospitals in Hauts Plateaux, South Kivu

Press Release 11 Mar 2010
 
Project Update

MSF urges European governments to respect life, dignity and healthcare of migrants and asylum seekers

Press Release 16 Dec 2009
 
Greece

Overcrowded cells and deteriorating living conditions cause tension inside Pagani Detention Center

Project Update 26 Oct 2009
 
Greece

People without any hope living in the Pagani detention center in Lesvos, Greece

Project Update 10 Sep 2009
 
Greece

MSF is deeply concerned about the condition of the migrants refugees and asylum seekers after police operation in Patras makeshift camp

Press Release 13 Jul 2009

Contact us

Lesbos Mobile Clinic - Moria Camp
MSF Greece

15 Xenias St.
115 27 Athens
Greece