Libraries for refugees: UNHCR Nansen Prize goes to Somali
Published: Tuesday, Nov 28th 2023, 07:21
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Former refugee Abdullahi Mire from Somalia has been awarded this year's Nansen Prize by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). The organization honored his educational projects in Kenya, where he set up three libraries with residents of refugee camps, among other things. "Abdullahi Mire is living proof that profound ideas can emerge in displaced communities," said UNHCR head Filippo Grandi in Geneva on Tuesday.
A year ago, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel received the Nansen Refugee Award. She was honored for her commitment to refugees at the height of the Syrian crisis in 2015 and 2016.
Mire (36) comes from the crisis-hit country of Somalia on the Horn of Africa. He grew up as a refugee in neighboring Kenya before finding a new home in Norway. However, he returned to Kenya to help people in refugee camps. "This award is not just for me," the UNHCR quotes the winner. "It's for all the volunteers and the children in the schools."
The prize, endowed with 150,000 dollars, is named after the Norwegian scientist, humanitarian and first High Commissioner for Refugees Fridtjof Nansen. Since 1954, it has been awarded to a person or organization that has made a special effort on behalf of refugees, internally displaced persons or stateless persons.
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