Nansen Refugee Award
Nansen Refugee Award
Abdullahi Mire, a former refugee championing education for displaced children and youth, is the 2023 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award’s Global Laureate.
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The 2023 Global Laureate is Abdullahi Mire, a journalist and former refugee from Somalia who has championed the right to education while putting 100,000 books in the hands of displaced children and youth in Kenya.
Read more about the 2023 winners.
- For multimedia content about each of the winners, please visit the media page.
The win is not for me alone. It is for all the volunteers I work with… It is for the children in the schools.
Winners pose for a photo with the High Commissioner at the 2023 Nansen ceremony in Geneva.
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The ceremony
The global laureate and regional winners will be honoured at a special ceremony in Geneva on 14 October 2024.
Meet the 2023 Regional Winners
The 2023 Regional Winners of the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award were selected from hundreds of nominees for their outstanding work with refugees, internally displaced and stateless people.
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Americas: Elizabeth Moreno Barco
This human rights defender and peace builder has spent decades advocating for communities affected by armed internal conflict in Colombia – especially women and children, Afro-descendants, indigenous groups, and internally displaced people.
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Asia-Pacific: Rohingya Storytellers
These four content creators – Abdullah Habib, Sahat Zia Hero, Salim Khan, and Shahida Win – use photography, video, and poetry to share vital information, document the experiences of stateless Rohingya refugees, and share their perspectives with the world.
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Europe: Lena Grochowska and Władysław Grochowski
This Polish couple have marshalled their hotel chain and private foundation to provide shelter and livelihoods training to refugees, including many living with disabilities, and leveraged their influence in the business community to rally support for people forced to flee.
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Middle East and North Africa: Asia Al-Mashreqi
This female leader is the founder and CEO of the Sustainable Development Foundation, which has provided humanitarian assistance to nearly 2 million individuals in Yemen, including refugees, returnees, internally displaced people, and host communities.
About the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award
Since 1954, more than 60 individuals, groups or organizations have received the Award for their extraordinary service to refugees, displaced and stateless people.
