Greece
Diogenes NGO
The Greek Homeless Football Team was set up in in 2006 and made its debut appearance at the 2007 Homeless World Cup. Diogenes NGO was founded in 2010 to coordinate the “Kick out Poverty” project as well as other activities aimed at supporting socially excluded people, and to continue the work of the Greek Homeless Football Team.
Based in Athens, but with activities also running in other parts of Greece, Diogenes NGO focus mainly on homeless people, people living below the poverty line, people in substance abuse rehabilitation, asylum seekers, and illegal immigrants.
Country statistics
33 out of 189 in Human Development Index rating (UNDP, 2022)
$22,590 Average annual salary per person (World Bank, 2023)
1.4 million refugees and migrants arrived in Greece between 2014 and early 2025.
Greece is a country in Southern Europe with a population of close to 10 million people with one third of the population living around capital city, Athens (Worldometers, 2025; CIA World Factbook).
Between 2009-2019 Greece suffered a severe economic crisis, leading to high rates of unemployment and bailouts from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. Greece left these bailouts in 2018 and since then Greece’s economy has improved significantly since (CIA World Factbook; BBC, 2018).
Young people were particularly affected by the economic crisis, with youth unemployment reaching 58% in 2018, unemployment rates have stabilised since and in 2024 sat below 10% (BBC, 2018; European Commission, 2024).
Between 2014 and early February 2025, some 1.4 million refugees and migrants arrived in Greece via sea or land, with 94% arriving by sea. Numbers peaked in 2015, with more than 860,000 refugees and migrants arriving in the country (UNHCR, 2025).
The number of children arriving to Greece by sea reached a five year high in 2024 with many children and families forced to live in poor conditions in refugee camps while they await their asylum requests being processed (Save the Children, 2024).
As of 2023, there was no legal requirement for the Greek government to collect statistics on homelessness in the country, however, there is a requirement for them to document anyone who is a resident in temporary accommodation or emergency shelter. As of 2023, 1,387 people were registered, with 78% men and 22% women, however these figures do not include people who are street homeless or who are currently living with family or friends and without permanent housing (OECD, 2023).
The Greek Government have a policy to combat poverty, with a minimum income support programme where individuals can apply for €200 a month for a single-person household, increased by €100 for each adult and €50 for any minor. People can access social service support, benefits and goods (Hellenic Government).
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