News
calendar_today17 January 2018
Slideshow
calendar_today15 December 2017
Some 173,000 people poured into Greece in 2016, many of them women and girls fleeing violence and turmoil in their home countries. In November 2016, Tayma Abzali and her new baby, Helen, were living in a tent. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
At a ceremony held on 14 December 2017, UNFPA formally handed over its work to the Government, which will carry on efforts to reach the 48,000 refugees and migrants estimated to be living in Greece today. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
The refugees have serious reproductive health needs – including antenatal care, safe delivery services, family planning, and clinical manage of rape. Illham Saleh spent the end of her pregnancy in an old tobacco warehouse. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time
Souad Syed Iessa, 25, got no prenatal care while fleeing Syria. Once she was ready to deliver, doctors discovered she had life-threatening complications. After a tense four-hour surgery, both she and the baby survived. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
At the onset of the crisis, UNFPA deployed emergency reproductive health services, supporting mobile reproductive health clinics and outreach workers. Ms. Abzali and Helen in their tent, which had no access to hot water. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
UNFPA also trained health workers and others, improving local capacity to serve these vulnerable women. Noor Alhouda Talaa was terrified to give birth in Greece, without her mother: “Here there is no one to help me.” Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
Since 2015, UNFPA has trained 1,350 people in Greece and 200 from the wider region, covering reproductive health, clinical care for rape, case management and related topics. Many of those trained are training others. Photo by Lynsey Addario for Time.
Since the EU-Türkiye agreement, overall arrivals to Greece in 2017 noticeably decreased (84%) in comparison to the dynamic monitored throughout 2016, from 172,777 to 28,340 respectively. Of the total number of refugees and asylum seekers in Greece, it is estimated that 6 out of 10 are women and children. Despite the marked decline in migrant arrivals in Greece, the number of people held in hotspots on Lesvos, Chios and other islands overwhelms existing capacity by nearly twofold. Several assessments conducted by UNFPA and partners before and after the EU-Türkiye Agreement highlighted that women and girls experience various forms of gender-based violence (GBV) in the sites, including domestic violence, sexual abuse, forced prostitution, and early marriage. As women, girls, and boys remain stranded in Greece for longer periods of time without access to income generating opportunities, many choose to embark on dangerous journeys with smugglers or are exposed to situations of sexual exploitation and trafficking. In that context, the risks of GBV and other risks related to sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are increased for everyone. Changing migration patterns and political realities significantly reduced the migration flow, but an estimated number of 46,000 refugees/migrants/asylum seekers remain in Greece for longer-term assistance. The Greek state has stepped up its provision of coordination support and services and in 2018, will be fully responsible for the integration of remaining refugees/migrants and providing comprehensive services. Adapting to this new reality, UNFPA has stepped up its capacity building efforts in order to further support the implementation and nationalization of SRH and GBV international standards in emergencies, as part of its strategic phasing out and strategic long-term presence positioning, through actions that are implemented until the end of 2017 and plans for strategic engagement/positioning within a broader presence in the Europe for emergency preparedness and response.
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