Recognizing and celebrating women and their vital contributions is essential. In refugee communities, women are making a remarkable impact in countless ways—as shop owners, firefighters, association founders, lawyers, artisans, mothers, and scholarship recipients.
This International Women’s Day, discover the inspiring stories of five women who are dedicating their lives to supporting displaced people, from Brazil to the Sahel. Whether through personal experiences of displacement or a lifelong commitment to humanitarian work, their efforts embody resilience, hope, and unwavering dedication.
1. Deepti Gurung: From fighting for her daughters' citizenship to changing the Constitution
Deepti Gurung secured legal identity for her two undocumented daughters and is now a key advocate for ending statelessness in Nepal.
Her fight began when her daughters, Neha and Nikita, were denied citizenship after their father abandoned them. Under Nepalese law, children couldn’t inherit citizenship from their mothers, leaving them without access to education, jobs, or even a SIM card.
“Citizenship is the door to everything,” Deepti said.
“I started this entire thing only with the qualification of being the mother of two daughters,” Deepti said on a recent humid monsoon morning in the office of her organization, the Citizenship Affected People’s Network (CAPN), in Kathmandu.
Deepti was named the 2024 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award regional winner for Asia. She turned personal pain into activism: in 2012, she launched a Facebook group that grew into a movement. Partnering with legal experts, she not only won citizenship for her daughters in 2017 but also pushed for broader legal reforms.
Though Nepal’s 2015 constitution allowed some mothers to confer citizenship, restrictions remain. Deepti and her allies continue fighting for full gender equality. “There’s no option other than winning this fight,” she said.
2. Aminata Soucko: Giving hope back to women after female genital mutilation (FGM)
Aminata Soucko survived female genital mutilation (FGM) and forced marriage before founding an association to support refugee women.
When she arrived in Spain from Mali, she was trapped—unable to speak the language and controlled by a violent husband. Born into a conservative culture, she endured FGM as a newborn and was forced to marry at 17, abandoning her dream of becoming a doctor.
“In my culture, when a woman marries, it’s the man who decides your destiny” she said.
In Spain, learning the language gave her the courage to report her abusive husband. As the first woman in her community to do so, she faced rejection from her family but refused to stay silent.
Her association, Aminata Network (Red Aminata in Spanish), works with UNHCR to fight gender-based violence, provide language classes, and create a safe space for refugee women.
Attending the classes is “an opportunity for women to leave their houses, learn about their rights, and understand that they also have the right to seek asylum.”
FGM causes extreme physical and psychological harm and is internationally recognized as a severe human rights violation. Girls and women who fear persecution in the form of FGM – or have survived FGM – can claim refugee status, but Aminata did not discover this until she had gone through the painful birth of a child, during which she suffered complications due to the consequences of FGM.
Aminata also helps women navigate reconstructive surgery for FGM, partnering with Farmamundi, a medical non-governmental organization, as an interpreter and emotional guide. “I am their psychologist, mother, and aunt because I have lived through it.”
3. Rosita Milesi: A life-long refugee advocate
Sister Rosita Milesi, 80, a farmer’s daughter turned Catholic nun, ended up as one of Brazil’s most influential refugee advocates, and she attributes it to one trait: determination.
“I’ve always been determined. If I take something on, I’ll turn the world upside down to make it happen,” she said in Boa Vista, where her organization, the Migration and Human Rights Institute (IMDH), supports refugees and migrants.
For her decades-long commitment, she was named the 2024 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award Global Laureate. She played a key role in expanding Brazil’s Refugee Law in 1997 and later helped shape the country’s 2017 Migration Law.
Beyond legal advocacy, she coordinates a network of 70 organizations, sits on key refugee committees, and publishes on forced displacement.
Sister Rosita remains driven, with plans to improve refugee education, diploma recognition for refugees, and address climate-driven displacement.
She will never stop working for a better future for refugees.
Hear the passion in her voice yourself from our interview we did with her when she passed by Geneva to receive her award. In this video, you will also learn more about the four other inspiring women who tirelessly advocate for their communities.
4. Suhaila: From fleeing conflict to working for peace, a dream to help Afghan women
Forced to flee Afghanistan at age four amid rising insecurity and violence, Suhaila longed for stability. In 2000, her family sought safety in the Kyrgyz Republic, struggling at first but the UNHCR-offered classes, including language classes, helped her integrate.
After high school, she aspired to continue studying but faced financial challenges. A DAFI scholarship (programme run by UNHCR with the support of donors) allowed her to pursue a business administration degree, a life-changing opportunity.
Surrounded by ambitious Afghan women at university, she became more engaged in her homeland’s issues. “When I got the scholarship, I felt like a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders,” she said.
Now working in administration and finance for an NGO focused on conflict resolution and prevention, Suhaila remains committed to Afghan women’s rights. Gaining Kyrgyz citizenship in 2023, with UNHCR’s legal support, gave her greater opportunities and control over her future.
“In the future, if it will be possible security-wise to go back and work in Afghanistan, I really do want to help women there … I was heartbroken when I heard that the Taliban had banned women from higher education,” she said.
She dreams of one day returning to help women in Afghanistan.
5. Maïmouna Ba: Giving education and training to children and women to bring peace to the Sahel
Born in Burkina Faso’s remote Sahel region, Maïmouna Ba was the youngest of 12 children and among the first girls in her family to attend school. Education transformed her life, and she became determined to use it to change others’ lives as well.
She studied marketing, but chose to dedicate herself to education advocacy, founding Femmes pour la Dignité du Sahel in 2020. Her organization provides school fees for displaced children and skills training for women, helping over 120 children enroll in school in 2024 alone.
“I don’t see myself as a hero,” she added. “I just see myself as a person who has convictions that she fights for. My belief is that we don’t need much to change the world. It all starts within us.”
Believing education combats extremism and fosters peace, Maïmouna also empowers displaced women to start small businesses, ensuring they can support their families. Undeterred by Burkina Faso’s crisis, she remains a dreamer, convinced that perseverance can bring change.
To some, Burkina Faso’s multifaceted crisis may seem insoluble, but not to Maïmouna. “I have always been a dreamer,” she said. “I have always set myself very ambitious goals that I have never thought were unachievable.”
These five women are just a few examples of the countless individuals making a difference in the lives of displaced people worldwide. Their dedication, resilience, and compassion remind us that change begins with those who dare to take action.
This International Women’s Day, let’s celebrate and support the women who are shaping a more inclusive and hopeful future for refugees—because when women rise, entire communities thrive.