Avril Benoît

Avril Benoît is the Executive Director of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières in the United States (MSF-USA). She first joined the international medical humanitarian organization as its director of Canadian communications after a 20-year award-winning career in journalism.

Throughout her career with MSF, Benoît has contributed to major movement-wide initiatives, including the global mobilization to end attacks on hospitals and health workers. She has worked as a country director and project coordinator for MSF, leading operations to provide aid to refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants in Mauritania, South Sudan, and South Africa. Benoît’s strategic analysis and communications assignments have taken her to countries including Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Haiti, Iraq, Lebanon, Mexico, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sudan, Syria, and Ukraine.

Prior to joining MSF, Benoît had a distinguished career as a journalist and broadcaster. She was a documentary producer and radio host with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, reporting from Kenya, Burundi, India, and Brazil on topics such as HIV stigma, rapid urbanization, sexual violence in conflict, and political inclusion of women.

Benoît is an Ottawa native and holds an M.B.A. in community economic development from Cape Breton University. Forbes magazine named her to their "50 Over 50-Impact" list in 2023.