The Directorate-General for Development and Humanitarian Aid (HELLENIC AID) is the official national body of the Greek government responsible for international development cooperation and humanitarian assistance.

As a Directorate-General of the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is the national authority and the co-ordinating mechanism for planning and shaping the development co-operation strategy. It is responsible for promoting, managing and implementing the national development co-operation policy.

This past year, Hellenic Aid undertook a series of important actions, especially in the sectors of health and combatting poverty, within the framework of the country’s co-operation with international networks and organisations.

Development and Humanitarian Actions in the Health Sector

In 2025, within the framework of global efforts to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda, one thematic priority of Greece’s international development cooperation was the comprehensive coverage of the health-related needs of its partner countries (in alignment with SDG 3 – “Good Health and Well-being”). This was pursued through multilateral contributions to organizations of the United Nations system, the provision of humanitarian assistance in kind, and the bilateral implementation of development initiatives.

With regard to multilateral contributions in the health sector, in 2025 Greece’s contributions (totaling EUR 1,250,000) to the World Health Organization (WHO) through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Hellenic Aid), included, indicatively:

(a) improvement of maternal and neonatal health in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,

(b) response to the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,

(c) addressing obstetric fistula in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa,

(d) strengthening WHO actions for Libya,

(e) a financial contribution for Syria, within the framework of the 9th Brussels Conference on Syria, Brussels, March 2025, and

(f) strengthening WHO actions in support of Palestinians.

In addition, Greece contributed to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for the programme: “Provision of reproductive and maternal health interventions for refugees and vulnerable populations in Moldova affected by the war in Ukraine.”

With regard to humanitarian assistance in kind, in 2025 two airlift operations were carried out for the transport of medical and pharmaceutical supplies to the Gaza Strip using aircraft of the Hellenic Air Force. Furthermore, at the expense of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, two consignments of humanitarian aid (pharmaceutical material and healthcare supplies) were transported by sea and land. These were collected by the Ministry of Health in cooperation with the Panhellenic Association of Pharmaceutical Companies (PEF) and the organization “HumanPlus,” to support hospitals assisted by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch.

With regard to Greek bilateral development initiatives related to the health sector:

(a) The implementation (for the academic year 2025–2026) of a programme for the training of doctors of Albanian nationality in Greece has begun, based on a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the University of Ioannina, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs covering the accommodation costs of eight trainee doctors.

(b) Continuation of the implementation of the programme “Fetal Medicine Programme 2022–2025,” which includes the establishment of Fetal Medicine/ Prenatal Screening Units and related training, in cooperation with the London-based Fetal Medicine Foundation, in five countries (Ethiopia, Albania, Armenia, North Macedonia, and Moldova) and Kosovo*.

(c) Support for an initiative of the Fetal Medicine Foundation (FMF), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Association of Midwives of North Macedonia, enabling the participation of midwives from North Macedonia in the English-language lifelong learning programme “Advanced Clinical Skills in Labour and Childbirth” at the Centre for Lifelong Learning (KEDIVIM) of the University of Western Macedonia.

Development and Humanitarian Actions to Combat Hunger and Poverty

Within the framework of global efforts to combat hunger and poverty, and taking into account its status as a member of the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, in 2025 Greece contributed a total amount of EUR 1,300,000 through multilateral channels, as follows:

• To the World Food Programme (WFP), for its actions in Afghanistan, in the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) of the Caribbean, and in Cuba, as well as in support of the “Grain from Ukraine” initiative.

• To UNICEF, within the framework of the 9th Conference on Syria, as well as in support of a School Breakfast Programme in Grenada.

• To the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), for the strengthening of the agri-food sector and food security in Armenia.

•  To the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), in the context of addressing humanitarian needs in Syria and Haiti, as well as to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund (AHF) managed by OCHA.

•  To the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), inter alia, for actions in Lebanon.

In addition to the above, on 9 August 2025, Greece participated with two aircraft of the Hellenic Air Force in operations involving the airdrop of 8.5 tons of humanitarian assistance (food and water) for the population of the Gaza Strip.