缅北禁地

Displaced Persons and Refugees

host country economies

Contributing to host-country economies

Ludmila arrived in Wroclaw from Ukraine shortly after the outbreak of the war, and now works in an NGO supporting Ukranian refugess in Poland.  highlights that accepting refugees is not only the right thing to do, but it also provides significant economic benefits to the host country. The countries that welcome refugees from conflict-affected areas, recognizing their right to reach safety and access opportunity, find that many have valuable skills and make important contributions to their new homes.

"There are certain images that will stay with me for a very long time. Because those are the images that cannot be forgotten overnight." Sajjad Malik witnessed terrible suffering during the Syrian crisis. As UNHCR鈥檚 former representative in the country, he oversaw one of the 缅北禁地Refugee Agency鈥檚 toughest and most dangerous operations.

Since the war in Syria started in 2011 more than 5.7 million people have fled the country. Another 6.9 million are internally displaced. In this special bitesize episode, Sajjad Malik reflected on the catastrophic conditions he witnessed there and the lasting impact of those memories.

"You have to maintain your mental strength and courage. It鈥檚 fine to say it and reflect and cry if need be."

A hidden crisis is enveloping neighbouring Ituri Province, in North Kivu, where civilians face extreme daily violence that has forced 1.5 million to flee their homes. and its partners in Ituri are providing emergency shelters, distributions of household items, and vital services including psychosocial and legal support to survivors of violence.

brings us the story of the many migrants caught between uncertainty and hope, who continue to risk their lives in the Darien Gap, an infamously perilous trek, seeking to reach North America.

With the onset of the cold weather, people in Ukraine would not leave their land and started preparing for the worst 鈥 teams supported 109 families in the Kyiv Region with renovation works.

brings us the story of Yash, 17, who writes to his refugee grandfather, now deceased. His grandad fled as a teenager in 1947 during the partition of India, leaving everything behind.

Undocumented and displaced

Living in legal limbo during wartime

Due to his complicated upbringing, Ievhen has never been able to get a passport or access many of his rights: to have an education, get a decent job, officially marry his partner Marharyta, open a bank account, or receive state benefits 鈥 which he should now be entitled to as an internally displaced person. He reached out to 鈥檚 partner NGO Caritas who referred the family to IOM鈥檚 tailored protection services. Legal identity is central to enabling regular migration and to protecting the rights of migrants throughout their migration journeys.

Most people are familiar with the phenomenon of refugees, those forced to flee their country of origin, because of fear of persecution or because of armed conflict or natural disaster. Internally displaced persons don鈥檛 cross international boundaries but find it necessary to relocate to a different region of their country. On , Conor Lennon met with Cecilia Jimenez-Damary 鈥 the 缅北禁地Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons 鈥 on the link between conflict and the climate crisis, which is increasingly causing people to search for safety.

brings us the story of Ana Marvez, who found a home in Chile, after finding the Music Foundation for Integration, a group composed mostly of musician refugees and migrants from Venezuela.

Dr. Angela Merkel, the former Federal Chancellor of Germany, accepted the 2022 at a special ceremony in Geneva, saying the prize was in honour of 鈥渢he countless people who lent a hand鈥 when large numbers of refugees arrived in Europe in 2015 and 2016. 鈥淚n reality, people鈥檚 lives happen locally, in cities and communities,鈥 she told the audience. 鈥淎nd that is why I would like to thank the local politicians and employees in the municipalities in particular, as well as the many volunteers in organisations or those who provide individual assistance.鈥 

Aryan Sanghrajka, 18, (Ba), who fled Uganda in 1972 due to the forced expulsion of Asian residents.

cover image for the podcast "Do no harm"

Sometimes, we might unintentionally trigger a harmful narrative on migration. In this episode of the podcast, #, we focus on how migration is not one-dimensional and why telling individual stories of migration, which reflect all dimensions of people, can help avoid perpetuating harmful narratives.

who uses the power of music, harmonizing his saxophone jazz melodies with a recording of his mother鈥檚 own story of migration, to accentuate the emotions of her story.

鈥淚 had to share my mother's story and just to give people that perspective of that side of life and how real it is for many people to this day,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t was very important to me and also just the gratitude that I have for her and her journey.鈥

From September 14 to October 2, Little Amal will be walking through all boroughs of New York City. Little Amal is the giant puppet of a 10 year old Syrian refugee girl. Since July 2021, she has travelled over 9,000 km representing all children fleeing war, violence and persecution, each with their own story. Amal has been welcomed at 190 unique events in 85 cities, towns and villages, her urgent message to the world is 鈥淒on鈥檛 forget about us鈥. Carrying a message of hope for displaced people everywhere, especially children separated from their families, she is an international symbol of compassion and of human rights.

Five years after a Pulitzer-Prize winning photo made him the face of the Rohingya refugee crisis, a young refugee has himself.

Though women and children make up 81 per cent of the nearly 1.53 million refugees in Uganda, refugee settlement leadership has historically lacked women鈥檚 representation. Cultural barriers, coupled with limited knowledge on rights and access to education, kept women from participating in decision-making processes. In 2018, began providing trainings for the women and youth of Adjumani and Yumbe districts, which host 30.1 per cent of Uganda鈥檚 total refugee population. The trainings included instruction in literacy, numeracy, women鈥檚 rights, leadership and life skills development, public speaking, debating and radio presentation. .