World Humanitarian Day: Celebrating the resilience of conflict-affected women and girls
Today is World Humanitarian Day, a time to stand with the millions of people whose lives hang in the balance due to armed conflicts and other emergencies. Around the world, over 600 million women and girls live within 50 kilometers of a conflict zone. At RefuSHE, we celebrate the remarkable determination of displaced women and girls, many of whom have fled violent conflicts in their home countries, in pursuit of a brighter future in Kenya. Below are three of their stories.
Cynthia’s story
Cynthia, 19, can clearly remember the moment when war erupted in her hometown in eastern DRC. She was gardening with her brother when gunshots rang out. They were forced to flee in a hurry, leaving their parents behind and embarking on a 1,000+ km hitchhiking journey to Kenya.
After settling in Nairobi, Cynthia became pregnant and was asked to find new housing. That’s when she found RefuSHE. She moved into our Safe House in 2020 and was connected to prenatal care, counseling, childcare, and a community of refugee girls. She also enrolled in our tailoring program and is now working towards starting her own business.
Zaitun’s story
When Zaitun was 15, a militia attacked her family home in Somalia, killing her father and brothers. The attackers demanded to take Zaitun as a wife. Fearing for their lives, she and her mother fled for Kenya, walking for several days and ultimately settling in Nairobi. At 18, Zaitun paid rent by selling tea and snacks. She was stuck in this cycle of debt for almost ten years.
In 2022, Zaitun was connected to RefuSHE through a local Women’s Ambassador Group. Through this group, Zaitun accessed micro-loans to help grow her business. She also found emotional support. “We have monthly meetings, and it feels very good to speak with the other women,” she said. Today, she makes enough money to cover her healthcare costs and other basic needs comfortably.
Nyalim’s story
Nyalim, 22, was only one years old when she and her older sister fled the civil war in their home country of South Sudan. When the siblings arrived in Kenya, Nyalim’s sister became her primary caregiver.
After completing high school, Nyalim enrolled in RefuSHE’s digital literacy program, which gave her the skills needed to jumpstart her career in beauty care. Today, Nyalim has gained her own client base and hopes to one day own her own beauty salon.
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