Our Partners at StARS: Supporting Refugees in Cairo

Egypt is home to hundreds of thousands of refugees. Most have fled from unrest and conflicts in countries including Syria, Sudan, Eritrea, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Yemen and Somalia, and many of these new arrivals are children who are alone, without their families.

In Cairo, CWS partners with St. Andrew’s Refugee Services–known as StARS–to provide a range of support for refugees, including educational, legal, medical, vocational and counseling services, to address both immediate and long-term needs. For individuals with emergency needs, we provide help such as rent assistance and food boxes.

Learn more about some of the program activities that StARS implements.

StARS is unique among refugee service organizations because over 85% of the staff are refugees. When a client sits down with a staff member, they are most likely talking to a fellow refugee. The staff can understand their client’s needs and perspectives better than almost anyone else.

Meet some of the incredible staff members, who make the work of StARS possible.

Meet some of the StARS Youth Advisory Board members.

StARS also hosts a Youth Advisory Board, made up of unaccompanied youth aged 18 to 21, all with lived experience of displacement, who work at StARS to strengthen youth participation in organizational development. Representing diverse nationalities and genders, the Youth Advisory Board acts as a bridge between unaccompanied children and youth, StARS staff, and external stakeholders.

Through regular meetings, the Youth Advisory Board shares personal experiences, identifies challenges, proposes solutions, and advocates for meaningful change—amplifying the voices of displaced youth and helping integrate them into decision-making processes both within and beyond the organization.

StARS organizes events throughout the year to facilitate community amongst program participants.

Each year, the team at StARS organize events, such as a bi-annual bazaar, a multi-faith Iftar (an evening meal used to break fast during Ramadan), and various debates and presentations, where participants can come together. By planning these activities, StARS staff are able to practice event planning and organizing skills, which they can then use when hosting visitors, donors and partners.

We are proud to stand with our refugee neighbors in Cairo as they start the next chapter in their lives.

All photos courtesy of Injinash Unshin. Learn more about CWS’s partnership with StARS and our work in Egypt here, and learn more about StARS here.