UNHCR Egypt

On the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, Shafak’s journey is a powerful reminder that sport can change lives.

Forced to flee Khartoum in 2023 just before completing her engineering degree, Shafak arrived in Egypt with her family carrying loss, uncertainty, and responsibility far beyond her years.

With support from UNHCR, life slowly stabilized. But it was through a Sports for Protection programme, implemented with UNHCR's partners, that something truly shifted.

⚽ A space to breathe
⚽ A way to rebuild confidence
⚽ A bridge across communities

“Football showed me that I am stronger than I thought. It gave me courage back,” she says.

Today, Shafak is back to studying, supporting her family, and playing the sport she once thought wasn’t for her.

Because sometimes, a football pitch is where healing begins.

👉 Read her full story and see how sport is helping refugees rebuild their lives.
https://www.unhcr.org/eg/news/stories/i-found-my-strength-again-shafak-s-journey-khartoum-football-pitch-egypt

نثمن الشراكة مع المجلس القومي للأمومة والطفولة لضمان حماية ورفاه حقوق اللاجئين الأطفال في مصر.

At just 20 years old, Ethar has already defied expectations. Born and raised in Egypt to Sudanese parents, she has navigated life between identities, but always with determination and big dreams.

A scholarship from UNHCR and the Sawiris Foundation took her to El Gouna to study hospitality, opening the door to independence and a promising career. But one dream stayed with her: journalism, a passion she inherited from her late father.

So, she made a bold choice. She left a secure path to follow her true calling, enrolling in a journalism program affiliated with AUC. Today, she’s in her second year and finally feels aligned with the future she always imagined.

“I’ve never been happier. I know my father would be proud,” she says.

This International Women’s Day, Ethar reminds us of what it means to be brave, to shift directions, chase dreams, and carve your own path.

And at only 20, she’s just getting started. 🌟