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Currently, most refugees
live in the cities
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rather than in the refugee camps.
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We represent over 60 percent
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of the number of refugees globally.
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With the majority of refugees
living in urban areas,
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there is a strong need
for a paradigm shift and new thinking.
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Rather than wasting money
on building walls,
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it would be better to spend on programs
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to help refugees to help themselves.
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(Applause)
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We always have to leave behind
all our possessions.
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But not our skills and knowledge.
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If allowed to live a productive life,
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refugees can help themselves
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and contribute to the development
of the host country.
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I was born in the city called Bukavu,
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South Kivu,
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in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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I am a fifth-born
in a family of 12 children.
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My father, a mechanic by profession,
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worked very hard to send me to school.
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Just like other young people,
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I had a lot of plans and dreams.
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I wanted to complete my studies,
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get a nice job,
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marry and have my own children
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and support my family.
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But this didn't happen.
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War in my homeland forced me
to flee to Uganda in 2008,
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nine years ago.
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My family joined
a steady exodus of refugees
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who settled in Uganda's capital, Kampala.
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In my country,
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I lived already in the city,
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and we felt Kampala was much better
than a refugee camp.
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Refugees in the cities
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have always been denied
international assistance.
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Even after their recognition
by UNHCR in 1997.
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In addition to the poverty problem
we were confronted with
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as the local urban poor,
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we were facing challenges
due to our refugee status,
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such as a language barrier.
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In Congo, the official language is French.
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But in Uganda, it is English.
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We didn't have access
to education and health.
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We were exposed to harassment,
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exploitation, intimidation
and discrimination.
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Humanitarian organizations mostly focused
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on the formal settlement in rural areas,
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and there was nothing in place for us.
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But we didn't want handouts.
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We wanted to work and support ourselves.
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I joined my other two colleagues in exile
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and set up an organization
to support other refugees.
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YARID -- Young African Refugees
for Integral Development --
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began as a conversation
within the Congolese community.
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We asked the community
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how they could organize themselves
to solve these challenges.
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The YARID programs for support
evolve in stages,
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progressing from soccer community,
to English language
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to sewing livelihoods.
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The soccer changed the energy
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of unemployed youth
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and connected people
from different communities.
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The free English classes
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help empower people to engage
with the Ugandan community,
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allowing them to get to know
their neighbors and sell wares.
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The vocational training program
offers livelihood skills,
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and with them, important opportunities
for economic self-reliance.
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We've seen so many families
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become self-sustaining.
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We've seen who no longer needs our help.
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As YARID's programs have expanded,
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they have included an increasing
range of nationalities --
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Congolese, Rwandan, Burundian,
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Somalis, Ethiopian, South Sudanese.
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Today, YARID has supported
over 3,000 refugees across Kampala
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and continues supporting more.
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(Applause)
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Refugees want empowerment, not handouts.
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We know our community better than anyone.
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We understand the challenges
and opportunities we face
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to become self-reliant.
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I know better than anyone
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that initiatives created by refugees work.
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They need to be internationally
recognized and supported.
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Give us the support we deserve,
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and we will pay you back with interest.
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Thank you so much.
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(Applause)