Our Mission

Our Οrganization’s mission as described in its Statutes is to:

  • defend/support justice, dignity and rights as regards migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and Greek repatriates,
  • monitor, study and evaluate all aspects of immigration so as to prepare and implement projects in order to address the needs of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers,
  • cultivate and promote a mutual intercultural understanding, as well as acceptance and respect of diversity through informative and sensitization activities.

History

“Integration Centre for Migrant Workers-Ecumenical Refugee Program (KSPM-ERP)” is a non-profit organization of the Church of Greece founded on July of 2012 (reg. no. 234/2012, Athens’ Court of First Instance 11561/2012) as the successor of the Integration Centre for Migrant Workers which had been operating as an office of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece since 1978, aiming initially at socially and financially supporting the reintegration of Greek returnees from German-speaking countries.

Ever since the 1990s, when migrants and refugees started flowing into Greece, the Integration Centre for Migrant Workers extended its scope to providing services to asylum seekers and refugees by founding a new office, the Ecumenical Refugee Program.

On 2/3/2021 the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, following a proposal by the Steering Committee of our Center, approved the change of the name to “SYNYPARXIS – ECUMENICAL REFUGEE PROGRAMME“.