MSC Group and MSC Foundation deliver immediate and ongoing earthquake relief and rebuilding assistance in Türkiye and Syria

Acting individually and with close partners worldwide, MSC begins shipping substantial relief supplies in just over a week of the devastating humanitarian disaster

Focus areas: Emergency Relief

This is a live article with regular updates

Within hours of the devasting 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Türkiye and Syria on Monday the 6th of February 2023, the MSC Group and MSC Foundation were mobilising to provide emergency relief and rebuilding support, liaising with the Turkish authorities, Italian Foreign Ministry and the Vatican.

As a result of this immediate response, MSC Aurelia was already heading from Naples to Iskenderun on the 15th of February, carrying basic necessities and first relief items collected by the MSC Foundation in partnership with the Rava Foundation. These included 10 pallets of emergency medical supplies, paediatric drugs, food supplements, toiletries and toys and crayons for children. The cargo also contained more than 30 pallets of long-life food, pasta and beverages, as well as warm clothes, thermal bottles and blankets that had been delivered that morning from Genoa, thanks to the efforts of MSC’s Procurement & Logistics division.

Upon reaching its destination, the ship will also be used as emergency accommodation, providing the local authorities with over 1,000 beds and equipped spaces, including a restaurant and cinema, as well as video games for children.

In addition, thanks to the MSC Foundation’s partnership with the United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR, a further 100 MSC containers packed with first relief supplies (including blankets, mattresses, sleeping bags, cooking sets, jerry cans and lamps) were on their way from the UNHCR warehouses in Jordan via Haifa in Israel and the port of Mersin in Türkiye to Gaziantep, one of the hardest hit cities, to meet the most urgent needs of those affected by the earthquake in the region.

In parallel with these initiatives, MSC Türkiye set up temporary accommodation using empty containers in Iskenderun port for 300 Group employees and their families who had tragically lost their homes in the disaster, also arranging for the distribution of food, beverages and items to meet basic needs. At the same time, the Group’s ships were working with the Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs to provide 5,000 containers in four of Türkiye’s hardest-hit provinces: Adıyaman, Gaziantep, Hatay and Kahramanmaraş. The containers will provide temporary accommodation for the earthquake survivors, protecting them from the harsh winter weather. 

Completing this initial wave of support, the MSC Foundation launched a global fundraising campaign in the second week of February, reaching out to all Group employees. Every donation is being matched by the MSC Group, doubling its impact for organisations working on humanitarian or reconstruction projects in Türkiye and Syria.

Daniela Picco, Executive Director of the MSC Foundation, commented: “We’re committed to acting promptly to support those in greatest need. As part of a global Group, we can do so at scale, partnering with foundations and associations all over the world. Moreover, our commitment continues through into the post-emergency reconstruction stages, helping communities rebuild and recover. This is not the first time that the MSC Foundation and Group have been in the front line of such situations: in 2022, we provided extraordinary funding totalling millions of euros to assist refugees from Ukraine and led eight emergency relief initiatives in nine countries worldwide.”

Mariavittoria Rava, President of the Rava Foundation added: "We’ve been incredibly moved by the plight of the children and families devasted by this immense tragedy, which brought back memories of the terrible earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010. As always in emergencies, the Rava Foundation's goal is to act quickly together with local institutions and partners, as we have done on this occasion with Joy For Children APS and Salaheddini Eyyubi Yardim Dernegi, which have already been operating on the Turkish-Syrian border for several years. I am deeply grateful to the MSC Foundation for their valuable partnership, which has enabled us to again bring prompt concrete assistance to earthquake victims. Thank you."

If you would like to join us in making a difference for the communities devasted by the earthquake in Syria and Türkiye, simply drop us a line at secretariat@mscfoundation.org and we’ll let you know how you can help.