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2025 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Awards: Celebrating humanitarian leadership
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Worldwide
Refugee mothers: Stories of resilience
To celebrate Mother’s Day, we’re sharing three stories of refugee mothers who are striving for a better future for their children, despite challenging circumstances.
Sally, Syrian earthquake survivor
In times of crisis, a mother's love and determination knows no bounds.
Sally gave birth to her son, Khodor, just one day after devastating earthquakes shook Syria and Türkiye.
“My due date was 15 February, however, the earthquakes on 6 February made me scared and anxious, which caused pre-term labour,” Sally said.
Sally and her family are living in a former school building that now serves as a makeshift shelter, where they share one room with 38 other people. Sally worries about baby Khodor falling ill.
Three months on from the quakes, UNHCR is continuing to support earthquake survivors like Sally and Khodor with emergency aid and protection.
Sally gave birth to her son, Khodor, just one day after devastating earthquakes shook Syria and Türkiye.
This Mother’s Day, you can purchase an Empowering Gift to send warm blankets, hygiene items and cooking utensils to vulnerable mothers who are caring for their children in temporary shelters.
Abay, Somali refugee
Abay has high hopes for her children now that she knows they will be able to go to school.
Back in Somalia, the devastating drought made it difficult for Abay and her husband to care for their family. After losing all their cows, they had no way to support their children, let alone help them get an education.
Now that her family is safe in Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, Abay hopes her children will have the opportunity to thrive and grow through education.
"I never went to school,” Abay confides. “I want my children to get an education so they can take care of me in the future.”
UNHCR supports preschool, primary and high school education in the camp, as well as adult literacy, vocational and technical training, and university education - helping refugees build better futures.
This Mother’s Day, you can purchase an Empowering Gift to help a refugee mother like Abay send her children to school.
Abay holds her seven-month-old son, Hamza, outside their shelter in Dadaab.
Raïssa, refugee scholar
Raïssa fled her home in the Central African Republic to find safety in Chad when she was 16, just before finishing Year 10. She didn’t have any money and had to work at a bar and restaurant to pay for her education.
When Raïssa fell pregnant, she was determined to finish high school. She studied during the night while her son was sleeping and earned her Baccalaureate.
“I never gave up,” said Raïssa. “In life, nothing is easy. It is all about courage.”
Raïssa is now completing a communications degree at university with support from UNHCR’s DAFI scholarship program.
Just six per cent of refugee youth are enrolled in higher education, compared to 40 per cent of non-refugee youth worldwide. UNHCR’s DAFI scholarships give refugee students like Raïssa the life-changing opportunity to earn an undergraduate degree.
“Today, thanks to the scholarship, I can manage. My son goes to school, I go to university.”
This Mother’s Day, you can help young women like Raïssa access higher education by purchasing a gift from our Empowering Gifts Store.
Raïssa, a UNHCR scholarship student, and her son walk to Sunday mass. © UNHCR/Antoine Tardy
