World Refugee Day Statement by Education Cannot Wait Executive Director Yasmine SherifNEW YORK, June 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On World Refugee Day , we must stand in solidarity with the 120 million forcibly displaced people – including 43 million refugees worldwide – who have lost their homes and their human rights as the result of persecution and conflict.As we unite with partners across the UN system, donors, the private sector and member states, we cannot forget the power of education to protect and safeguard the futures of the world's most vulnerable children. These are children uprooted from their homes, their schools and their country, often ending up outside the public school system.Our world is bleeding from inhumane and brutal armed conflicts. The most recent statistics from our partner UNHCR indicate the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide increased by 8% between 2022 and 2023, continuing a series of year-on-year increases over the last 12 years. In the State of Palestine alone, 6 million refugees are under UNRWA's mandate. The world at large is facing the largest number of refugees since World War II.Low- and middle-income countries are affected the most, with 75% of the world's refugees and other people in need of international protection.The dispossession, the uprooting, the suffering stemming from human rights abuses has become the new 'normal' for these forcibly displaced populations. Their lives and development demand a turn-around from the abnormal to real normalcy

Selection Announced as Number of People Who Are Forcibly Displaced Reaches 120 Million GloballyWASHINGTON, June 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In recognition of World Refugee Day, June 20, USA for UNHCR today announced 20-year-old Lucky Karim, a former Rohingya refugee, as the organization's featured storyteller.Lucky's narrative of her journey – a path that led her from a refugee camp in Bangladesh to the halls of Congress to advocate for the Rohingya – was selected from a group of powerful submissions to the Storyteller Celebration contest.USA for UNHCR featured storyteller Lucky Karim brings her advocacy for Rohingya refugees to Washington, DC, in 2024. Photo: USA for UNHCR/Nicholas Feeney"Lucky Karim's advocacy for Rohingya refugees is brave and transformative," said Suzanne Ehlers, Executive Director and CEO of USA for UNHCR. "I've been to the refugee camps in Bangladesh and have heard firsthand from the people there the desire for education and a dignified future. Lucky is a generational voice for the Rohingya people, and she carries an immense responsibility at a young age with grace and determination."Lucky's family was forced to flee violent military crackdowns in their village in 2017. They joined nearly a million refugees that have sought safety in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Lucky quickly learned Bangla and English with the help of tutors and by watching videos on YouTube, and found herself advocating for her community's needs as a teenager at tables with NGOs and the United Nations