Athens has a population of approx. 660,000 (2011), with more than 15,000 immigrants (March 2016), but also nearly 400,000 youth that have emigrated from the city due to the financial crisis. Being the major economic hub of Greece, displaced people come to Athens looking for friends and relatives, empty apartments and cheap housing, as well as higher chances of finding work than in the country’s rural areas. 

To address the housing challenges, the city plans to build 20,000 houses (growing to 30,000 in the next two years) with the support of UNHCR, the EU and 15 other partners. The city is also partnering with the Munich, Germany, to provide access to the labour market and to exchange policies through the mentorship programme CITIES-GroW. To improve urban planning, a collaboration and communication platform informing citizens and authorities about initiatives and facilitating the identification and matching of the needs and gaps in providing services has also been launched and provides opportunity to coordinate actions of key actors during refugee / migration crisis. 

In addition, municipality of Athens has recently established the Athens Coordination Centre for Migrant and Refugee issues (ACCMR). This is one of several different councils and centers established by the municipality for participation of migrants in development of local polices and initiatives for integration and delivery of services to migrants. The ACCMR is a collaborative platform bringing together municipal authorities and around 70 participating stakeholders (national and international NGOs, the third sector, migrant and refugee fora), with the aim the mapping of needs, identifying gaps in the provision of services, and to facilitate collaboration for the development of a strategic action plan for the effective integration of refugees and migrants living in Athens. The ACCMR is organized around five Working Committees (with the participation of both municipal and NGO actors), each focusing on a specific set of services (housing employment, health, education, legal support), all working towards defining a comprehensive service delivery system that takes into consideration the short-term and long-term goals of integration.