Tibo is a former refugee turned passionate fundraiser, making an inspiring impact at UNHCR, Dubai. Background: I was 13 years old when the civil war started in Sierra Leone in March 1991. My village was attacked in April 1991—a horrifying and traumatic experience I would not wish upon anybody. Before the war, the village was a…
Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives’ Cash Assistance Offers Hope and Resilience to Earthquake Affected Families in Aleppo With over 8 million people affected by the February earthquakes, UNHCR Syria’s cash assistance promotes self-sufficiency by allowing the families to prioritize their most urgent needs. By Zeineb Marzouk After being forced to leave his house…
I often write to you asking for support either in helping refugee families, to inform you about an emergency or to share updates on the impact of your donation. But today is unlike any other day, as we mark World Humanitarian Day, and on this occasion, I wanted to share with you a message of…
It’s not easy to make a change. If you are like me, the chances are that you are feeling exhausted by all the chaos in the world. Wherever you look, every social media post you see, every news you hear, seems to carry with it bad news. People are suffering everywhere. This amount of human…
Last August, the United States withdrew troops from Afghanistan. The world watched in horror as crowds took to the airstrips to flee an unsettling and volatile future. Those who fled have now become Afghan refugees. Out of the ones left behind, 3.5 million people have become internally displaced, uncertain about their future having to survive…
There is a famous phrase that you must have seen at some point on the internet. It goes as follows: “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” Over the years people had different interpretations of this message, but all with the same intention and one main message, “when life gives you challenges, create opportunities”. This…
We live in a world full of chaos, which sometimes leaves us feeling hopeless and helpless. As someone working with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, we try our best to cut through the noise, to tell the stories of families displaced by violence, persecution or war, hoping to be able to offer a glimmer of hope and change to the life of refugee families. We highlight the resilience of refugee families, who need our support…
In this interview, our colleague Paula Esteban, UNHCR Lebanon Senior Communications Officer, shares heartfelt real-life stories from refugee mothers she has met in the field. She also highlights UNHCR’s work ahead of winter in Lebanon, a country that has faced so much hardship over the past two years, and continues to host more than 1 million refugees…
Have you been watching the news and heard of the alarming situation in Afghanistan? We have, and we cannot but describe these times as traumatic and crucial. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is concerned about the prevailing humanitarian needs within Afghanistan, and urges support to ensure that all those requiring assistance are not forgotten. So…
This year, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi will mark eight years of holding her title of UNHCR Eminent Advocate, and in renewing, will enter into a two-year term that will mark a decade of transformative impact. Since 2013, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher has supported more than one million refugees and internally displaced persons around…