Today, more than 117.8 million people around the world have been forcibly displaced by conflict, crisis, persecution, and human rights violations. Among them are 35.6 million refugees and 68.7 million displaced people within their own countries.
These figures are staggering, but they tell only part of the story. Behind every number is a person: a parent forced to leave everything behind to keep their family safe, a child whose memories are shaped by conflict instead of carefree play, and a future placed on hold by circumstances beyond anyone’s control.
This World Refugee Week, we honor the courage of displaced people around the world. Despite immense loss and uncertainty, millions continue to move forward with determination —rebuilding their lives, supporting their families, and holding onto hope.
The stories that follow highlight the journeys of individuals Relief International has had the privilege to support across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
From survival to rediscovering purpose in Syria
Abdulqader during a rehabilitation session at a Relief International-run clinic.
In 2014, an airstrike in Ariha, Syria, changed Abdulqader’s life forever. The attack resulted in the amputation of his right leg and multiple shrapnel injuries. As the country’s healthcare system collapsed around him, he traveled to Türkiye for urgent medical treatment.
Later Abdulqader was referred to Relief International’s rehabilitation center. What began as a medical consultation evolved into a decade-long partnership with his health professionals. Through psychosocial support, rehabilitation services, and a customized prosthesis, Abdulqader gradually regained mobility and independence.
Between 2016 and 2026, Abdulqader received successive prosthetic upgrades, culminating in a high-technology structure with a hydraulic knee and carbon-fiber foot. Today this prosthesis enables him to work and support his family.
Abdulqader delivers orders across Antakya on an electric bicycle and describes the rehabilitation center as his “second home and refuge”.
Last year, Relief International supported almost 3,000 people in need of healthcare and assistive devices in Türkiye.
"Disability is not in the body, but in the mind. My ability to give did not end; it only changed form," Abdulqader says.
Rebuilding a life from scratch in South Sudan
Mai Atif with her friends and neighbours — who are also supported by Relief International — in South Sudan.
When conflict erupted in Sudan in 2023, 25-year-old Mai Atif was forced to flee Khartoum with her husband and two young children. After arriving in Maban County in neighboring South Sudan, she faced the challenge familiar to milions of displaced people worldwide: rebuilding a life from scratch.
Through Relief International’s vocational training program, Mai enrolled in a three-month beautician course. She soon graduated and after receiving the required tools, she started her own salon business. Due to Mai’s ambition, her new skill became a pathway to more financial stability.
Beyond livelihoods support, Mai also accessed essential healthcare, nutrition services, and agricultural training through Relief International’s programs. Together these interventions helped Mai’s family move from survival toward a more secure future.
"As a result of Relief International’s support, I have managed to increase our daily income," she says.
Creating ripples of positive change in Afghanistan
For many refugees returning home, the journey does not end at the border. In fact, the long process of rebuilding is only just beginning. For Afghan refugee Abdul, that new beginning started with a skill. While displaced in Pakistan, Abdul took part in certified training for mobile phone repair through a Relief International project.
Today, he runs a successful mobile phone repair business back in Afghanistan, earning a stable income and supporting his family. “In Herat, I am working successfully while many others struggle with unemployment. I chose mobile phone repair because it is a skill for the modern era,” he says.
Abdul now hopes to pass his knowledge on to young people in his community, enabling them to build sustainable livelihoods of their own.
Last year, Relief International supported more than 15,000 Afghan refugees in Pakistan spanning livelihoods training, health, wellbeing, and education.
"I want to teach young people these skills so they can support themselves and contribute positively to their communities," he explains.
As World Refugee Week reminds us, the global displacement crisis is measured not only in numbers, but in human lives. Behind every statistic is a person striving to recover and reclaim their future.
From lifesaving health services to physical rehabilitation, livelihoods training, and beyond — Relief International is committed to supporting communities displaced by crisis to not just survive, but to stand on their own two feet, rebuild, and thrive.
