Hollywood actress, Kristin Davis, who is a UNHCR High Profile Supporter and philanthropist is on an official mission in Rwanda with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Kristin Davis in Mahama refugee camp. UNHCR provides shelter for Burundian refugees in Mahama camp – building new semi permanent shelters. There are over 50,054 refugees in Mahama camp, most of whom have been there since April 2015. With no signs of them being able to return UNHCR have started to build semi permanent structures with brick and corrugated roofs to give people more protection from the weather and also SGBV.
Best known for Golden Globe winning series ‘Sex and the City’ , Ms. Davis is visiting Rwanda in order to better understand UNHCR‘s operation to ensure protection and assistance for the over 165,000 refugees living here,
“We are thrilled to host Kristin Davis in Rwanda so she can meet refugees and help bring their stories to a global audience,”
said Saber Azam, Representative of UNHCR in Rwanda.
Ms. Davis is filming in both Gihembe and Mahama camps to showcase the work of UNHCR and to highlight both the tremendous needs, but also the remarkable resilience, of refugees. During her stay, Ms. Davis met with Congolese and Burundian refugees living in camps and also a group of urban refugees who work as community organizers in Kigali. Supporting UNHCR’s efforts to mobilize resources for its refugee programmes.
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Kristin Davis meets UNHCR Representative in Rwanda Saber Azam
“I am amazed and inspired by the kindness of the Rwandan people – their deep understanding and empathy for the Burundian and Congolese refugees and welcoming them into their own communities and integrating refugees into national systems like education,” Ms. Davis stated.
An active philanthropist, Ms. Davis has highlighted the work of UNHCR in extensive media interviews and writing of features and opinion pieces and has helped shine a spotlight on the global refugee crisis. UNHCR, which co-leads the interagency response for refugees in Rwanda with MIDIMAR, has the responsibility to ensure protection of refugees and to find durable solutions for refugee situations. To that end UNHCR is working to advocate with partners such as the One UN to ensure socio-economic inclusion of Congolese refugees – who have lived in Rwanda for 20 years – in development programs.
Davis starred in the box office hit ‘Couples Retreat’ opposite Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn and reprised her role of Charlotte in the 2008 big-screen hit ‘Sex and the City,’ which was number one at the box office on its opening weekend and grossed over $415 million worldwide and then again in ‘Sex and the City ,’ the sequel to the first movie. Additional feature film credits for Davis include the holiday comedy ‘Deck the Halls,’ ‘The Shaggy Dog’ and Robert Rodriguez’s children’s adventure ‘The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D.’
Davis was also seen on the small screen in the award winning Lifetime original movie, ‘Of Two Minds,’ which she also executive produced. The film deals with mental illness and chronicles the relationship between a woman (Davis) and her younger sister (Tammy Blanchard), who has schizophrenia.
An active philanthropist, Davis dedicates her time and efforts serving as Patron to the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust an Oxfam Ambassador and as a UNHCR supporter on humanitarian issues with a focus on East Africa.
Ms Davis traveled out to Northern Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo with UNHCR where she visited South Sudanese Refugees and also the Nansen winner Sister Angelique with whom she created a strong bond.
She has spoken at the United Nations in an effort to eradicate poverty and fight for social justice and has visited a host of local communities throughout the world to gain a better understanding of gender issues and poverty, as well as how environmental issues affect people and their surroundings. These countries include South Africa, Haiti, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania
New Song; From Rwanda
