Somali refugees and local residents dance during World Refugee Day celebrations in Ethiopia’s Mirqaan settlement in June 2023. © UNHCR/Diana Diaz
By UNHCR Staff
Welcome to the World Refugee Day 2024 live blog, highlighting stories and events from around the globe celebrating the strength and courage of people forced to flee their homes
The focus for this year is “solidarity with refugees”, whether through welcoming and including them in our communities, advocating for policies that protect and support them, or working towards solutions to their plight.
Coming the week after new data revealed the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide has risen to an unprecedented 120 million, World Refugee Day offers a chance to show our support for those whose lives have been uprooted by conflict and persecution.
We hope these examples of global solidarity will inspire you to get involved and stand #WithRefugees and others #ForcedToFlee.
Last entry of World Refugee Day 2024 live blog
That’s all for this year’s World Refugee Day live blog. We hope this global outpouring of support for people forced to flee conflict and persecution inspires you to show solidarity with refugees today, and every day. We’ll leave you with a look at monuments around the world lit up in UNHCR blue to show support for refugees in the most visible way possible.
Pemba, Mozambique
Refugees from Burundi, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond set off at sunrise for a 3-kilometre March for Hope in northern Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province. They were joined by around 250 people, including internally displaced Mozambicans and local students, all showing their solidarity and support for a world that welcomes refugees.
Walkers set off at sunrise by the beach in Pemba in northern Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province to show their support for refugees. © UNHCR/Isadora Zoni
USA
Refugees from four continents now living in the US have shared what gives them Hope Away from Home, from family ties to supportive local communities and economic opportunities. Their testimonies show the difference that acts of solidarity and welcome can make to the lives of people forced to flee.
Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh
Heavy monsoon rains brought devastating floods and landslides to the world’s largest refugee camp in southern Bangladesh earlier this week, affecting thousands of Rohingya refugees and claiming several lives. The disaster added a sombre tone to World Refugee Day commemorations and highlighted the continued need for solidarity and support #WithRefugees.
Happy #WorldRefugeeDay!
As the #Rohingya refugee community recovers from a difficult week with devastating rains, floods & mudslides, we still took a moment to commemorate and celebrate the day.
Because on World Refugee Day – and every other day! – UNHCR stands #WithRefugees pic.twitter.com/xXS0OnkpdM
— UNHCR in Bangladesh (@UNHCR_BGD) June 20, 2024
Washington DC, USA
Venezuelan star and UNHCR high profile supporter Danny Ocean will be performing a free concert dedicated to forcibly displaced people at the Kennedy Centre tomorrow. If you can’t make it in person, catch the livestream on the Kennedy Centre’s YouTube channel or Kennedy Centre’s Facebook page.
Join for a free #WorldRefugeeDay concert with Latin American star Danny Ocean on the Kennedy Center’s #MillenniumStage.
⚡️ Live in person: https://t.co/WmJlEZnYdx
️ You can join via livestream!
➡️ https://t.co/Qav144dvGe pic.twitter.com/0oerDkv3cz— UNHCR United States (@UNHCRUSA) June 19, 2024
Warsaw, Poland
Polish photojournalist Anna Liminowicz has published a novel project in collaboration with UNHCR to mark World Refugee Day featuring portraits of refugees living in Warsaw in the places that remind them of home. “This is the place” combines photography, text and handwritten notes to reveal how refugees seek to tame their new reality by finding places that evoke positive memories and help them feel at home. Her work appears today in a special feature in Canada’s Globe and Mail.
Panama City, Panama
UNHCR and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Panama City hosted a contemporary dance performance called “The Embraces Along the Way”. The piece, created by Fundación Espacio Creativo, incorporated poetry, music and art to celebrate moments of humanity and solidarity that those forced to flee encounter as they search for safety.
Geneva, Switzerland
Staff at UNHCR headquarters marked World Refugee Day with an event that featured traditional Afghan tunes by musical trio Hamava, a stall of handicrafts created by refugees as part of the MADE51 programme, and a keynote speech by Ana Maria Angarita, a former Colombian refugee who co-founded Capacity, a Swiss-based entrepreneurship and startup incubator for people from refugee and migrant backgrounds.
Aden, Yemen
The UNHCR office in Aden hosted a celebration at their refugee reception centre featuring music, dance and delicious treats highlighting the rich and diverse cultural heritage of refugee communities in Yemen.
Refugees and UNHCR staff at the World Refugee Day event in Aden. © UNHCR/Gregory Doane
Kutaisi, Georgia
Renowned Georgian mural artist, Giorgi Gagoshidze, has been working with young refugees and local art students to create murals aimed at raising awareness and garnering support for refugees in three cities. This one in Kutaisi shows refugees arriving in the city symbolically carrying their homes in backpacks.
On this #WorldRefugeeDay, UNHCR Georgia is delighted to support talented refugees and students of the Kutaisi Art School in creating a beautiful mural in Kutaisi, alongside the renowned mural artist Giorgi Gagoshidze with whom we have teamed up in an exclusive collaboration. pic.twitter.com/FK7KatJGmY
— UNHCR Georgia (@UNHCRGeorgia) June 20, 2024
Riga, Latvia
World Refugee Day coincides with midsummer celebrations in Latvia where refugees joined locals to take part in traditional songs and dances at an event in Riga, the capital.
At a #WorldRefugeeDay event in Riga , locals and refugees came together to sing, dance, and celebrate Midsummer .
The event was organized by our partner @PatverumsDM. pic.twitter.com/h3z3RODoaS
— UNHCR Nordic and Baltic Countries (@UNHCR_NE) June 20, 2024
Cairo, Egypt
Refugees took centre stage during Egypt’s World Refugee Day celebrations, which were held at the American University in Cairo. Live performances by South Sudanese dance troupe Sons of Farateet and traditional Syrian band Anwar Al Sham were interspersed with personal stories from refugees living in Egypt hailing from Yemen, Somalia, Syria and Sudan.
Japan
To commemorate World Refugee Day, carp-shaped streamers known as “koinobori” designed by Shibuya Zarny, a fashion designer and former refugee from Myanmar, are flying the skies in various locations across Japan. Over 50 landmarks are also lit up in UNHCR blue, including a 25-metre statue of the Buddhist goddess of mercy in Kamakura.
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
In Burkina Faso’s capital, refugees joined UNHCR staff and partners to do aerobics together at the municipal stadium and formed a football team to compete against a team representing the Burkina Faso government for a solidarity cup. They also cleaned a market in an area of the city where many refugees live.
Global
Several UNHCR Goodwill Ambassadors and high-profile supporters have been recording “Words of Welcome” for refugees taken from their favourite books, poems and song lyrics. Watch Goodwill Ambassadors Mary Maker, Yusra Mardini and Maya Ghazal share theirs.
For #WorldRefugeeDay, UNHCR’s Goodwill Ambassadors share their ‘Words of Welcome’ #WithRefugees. @yusramardini, @GhazalMia and @marymaker_43 know first-hand how crucial solidarity is and share powerful messages of support. ✨ pic.twitter.com/tDiYOx5jfN
— UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency (@Refugees) June 19, 2024
Jamjang, South Sudan
Concluding a week-long visit to Sudan and South Sudan, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi issued his annual World Refugee Day message with an impassioned plea to overcome division and resolve festering conflicts to offer refugees a chance at solutions. “On World Refugee Day and every day, we can all do more to show solidarity with refugees and work towards a world where they are welcomed or can return home in peace. With courage, commitment and compassion, solutions are within our grasp,” Grandi said.
At the Joda border crossing in South Sudan, UNHCR’s Grandi meets South Sudanese returnee Dalia, 22, who was about to start university in Khartoum before her family fled the conflict. © UNHCR/Samuel Otieno
Kakuma, Kenya
Members of the local host community in northwest Kenya’s Turkana County walked in solidarity with refugees from Kakuma town to the Deputy County Commissioner’s office. They planted trees there to show their gratitude to the Kenyan government for welcoming them. Refugees have been hosted in Turkana County since Kakuma camp was established there in 1992.
Global
Refugees and forcibly displaced people dream of the same things that you do: jobs, education, health care, a home. This video voiced by UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Mary Maker explores the everyday solutions that bridge the gap between comfort and crisis and reminds us of our shared humanity.
We need a world where refugees are given a fair shot.
We need a world where refugees find solidarity.
We need a world where refugees are welcomed. #WorldRefugeeDay | #WithRefugees pic.twitter.com/059oUlZLui— UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency (@Refugees) June 19, 2024
Athens, Greece
The Cooking #WithRefugees Festival returns to Athens this week. Refugee chefs from Afghanistan, Guinea, Iran, Iraq and Nigeria have been working with local chefs in five restaurants and cafés across the capital to blend Greek culinary traditions with flavours and memories from their home countries.
Sardar Hasemi (left), a refugee from Afghanistan, cooks with Thomas Avlakiotis at Myrtillo café in Athens. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan
Events to mark World Refugee Day have been taking place across Afghanistan, including a cricket tournament in Kunduz, an arts and crafts bazar in Kabul and this exhibition of handicrafts by internally displaced and formerly displaced women in Mazar-i-Sharif.
Women supported by UNHCR to start livelihood activities showcased their products at an exhibition in Mazar-i-Sharif. © UNHCR
Brussels, Belgium
Local and refugee artists from Burundi, Afghanistan, Syria, Ukraine, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo performed at an outdoor concert at Place Jean Rey in Brussels on Sunday. A Bazaar also took place with delicious Middle Eastern, Ukrainian, Afghan and Burundian delicacies and handmade items created by refugee artisans.
All the feels after last weekend’s refugee-led concerts and bazaar in Brussels ahead of #WorldRefugeeDay
Huge thanks to everyone who joined us to stand #WithRefugees and celebrate their incredible strengths and talents! pic.twitter.com/b9tdExg1PK
— UNHCR Representation for EU Affairs (@Refugees_EU) June 19, 2024
Stockholm, Sweden
For the third year running, UNHCR marked World Refugee Day in Stockholm, by passing the mic to participants from its Refugee Speakers Programme. Five refugee speakers took part in workshops and received coaching from TEDx coaches in preparation for sharing their personal stories of fleeing home, and of building a new life in Sweden. Purity performed a powerful poem and dance about her experience of fleeing homophobic and transphobic violence in Uganda.
What an inspiring evening.✨
Our #PassTheMic event tonight was filled with strong personal stories and memorable moments like this special dance by our refugee speaker Purity.
Thank you to everyone who took part in the event. #WorldRefugeeDay pic.twitter.com/9c3RhV0YRQ
— UNHCR Nordic and Baltic Countries (@UNHCR_NE) June 17, 2024
Originally published by UNHCR 20 June 2024.
