This Refugee Entrepreneur Is Helping Young Women Gain Financial Independence
Desange Kuenihira, a former refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), has been announced as UNHCR’s featured storyteller. After being forced to flee violence in the DRC, she found safety in a UNHCR-supported refugee camp in Uganda.
Now, Kuenihira, a graduate of the University of Utah, has resettled in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is the author of Undefeated Woman. This book speaks about her refugee journey.
Kuenihira creating unDEfeated
In 2020, Kuenihira founded unDEfeated, a nonprofit organization that provides educational and entrepreneurial opportunities for girls and women facing severe financial hardship in Uganda.
When Kuenihira fled to Uganda, her options were limited. As a woman, one of her only hopes was marrying a significantly older man who would pay her dowry price. She watched as her friends were forced to marry, have children, and live a life of servitude. However, Desange was given the chance to have a different future when she came to the US.
While in the US, she refused to forget about the girls she left behind and founded UnDEfeated for her friends and the countless young women in Uganda who don’t have someone who values their worth.
unDEfeated becomes UNHCR featured storyteller
Every year on World Refugee Day, the UNHCR highlights the achievements of young refugees and refugee allies from across the United States through its Storyteller Celebration. This year, Kuenihira is their featured storyteller.
“In a new country, far from home, the kindness of strangers became my lifeline,” Kuenihira says. “I learned that no matter where we come from, we share a common humanity, and it is through compassion and connection that we truly thrive.”
“Desange’s dedication to uplifting refugee women and girls in Uganda, at a moment when the humanitarian sector is facing the devastating impact of funding cuts, is a brave act of love, Suzanne Ehlers, Executive Director and CEO of USA for UNHCR, says.
Image: PRnewswire
