José Guimarães

AMI is a private, independent, apolitical and non-profit Portuguese Non-Governmental Organization (NGO). Since it was created, on December 5, 1984, by surgeon urologist Fernando Nobre, AMI has stood out as an innovative humanitarian organization in Portugal, aiming to intervene rapidly in crisis and emergency situations and to fight underdevelopment, hunger, poverty, social exclusion and the consequences of war anywhere in the world. With Human being at the center of its concerns, AMI’s mission is to bring humanitarian aid and promote human development, taking into account the Human Rights and the Millennium Development Goals in health, social and environmental, anywhere in the world, regardless of race, gender, age, nationality, language, politics, religion, philosophy or social standing, looking at each person as unique, irreplaceable, and worthy of attention and care. AMI has created fifteen social facilities and responses in Portugal and has performed in dozens of countries around the world, where it has sent tons of aid (medicines and medical equipment, food, clothing, vehicles, generators, etc…) and hundreds of volunteers. Having accomplished its first objective of providing medical assistance to Portuguese-speaking countries, AMI has taken the Portuguese humanitarian presence around the World. Since 1994, AMI intervenes both nationally and internationally; promoting physical health as well as social and environmental health. There are four pillars underpinning the conduct of AMI today: Health Care, Social Work, Environment and Awareness Raising. The definition of each pillar shows that, in almost 30 years of existence and driven by increasingly more active participation, AMI has diversified its operations, adapting to changes in society and seeking consistent, harmonious intervention, with Human Beings as its primary concern.