Dignity first: Rethinking humanitarian aid on World Refugee Day

The essentials of a dignified life today are widely accepted to include food, shelter, education, healthcare, and safety. These are considered the foundation of human survival. Yet what we often overlook is that “essentials” are not fixed; they shift depending on where we are — and sometimes, who we are.

This becomes painfully clear when we compare stable societies with refugee communities. In the former, basic needs are often taken for granted. Over time, people seek higher-order needs: freedom of expression, creativity, personal growth, and fulfilment. In refugee communities, however, needs do not diminish — they multiply in proportion to the scale of loss. Refugees long not only for food or medicine, but for something harder to define and even harder to restore: a home, a memory, a sense of protection, and the dream of a future. These needs cannot be met through material aid alone. They require something deeper — genuine human solidarity that restores reassurance to the spirit.

This reality brings us back to a principle at the heart of humanitarian work: the difference between meeting basic needs and restoring the human spirit. Dignity, respect, and self-determination can — and often must — take precedence over food or shelter. The need is not just to survive, but to feel alive.

As of the end of 2024, over 123 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced due to conflict, violence, and persecution. Of these, 73.5 million remain displaced within their own countries. One of the most alarming developments has been the crisis in Sudan, which has now become the world’s largest displacement crisis — surpassing Syria — with over 14 million people displaced. These are not just numbers; they are lives fragmented by forces beyond their control. And the magnitude of this suffering demands more than emergency response. It demands a response rooted in dignity.

Without dignity, even food and medicine lose their meaning. Aid must preserve self-respect and empower people as active participants in rebuilding their lives. Genuine solidarity is not measured solely by what we provide, but by what we help keep alive within the individual. What keeps someone truly alive is not just bread and water, but passion, decision-making, expression, and the ability to dream. These elements — intangible as they may seem — form the foundation of long-term resilience.

That is why at The Big Heart Foundation (TBHF), we firmly believe that refugees are not a “special case.” Our mission extends far beyond fulfilling immediate physical needs. We are here to keep the human spirit alive, and to affirm that a displaced person’s future remains theirs to shape.

For over a decade, TBHF — guided by His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, and Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, our Chairperson — has worked to centre dignity in every humanitarian response. We ask ourselves the difficult questions: Have we truly listened? Have we preserved dignity? Have we made space for individuals to lead?

Through this vision, our interventions have impacted more than 5.6 million individuals across 35 countries, with programmes spanning healthcare, education, livelihood development, and vocational training. These are not just services — they are opportunities. In the last 10 years, and thanks to the unwavering support of our partners and community, we have raised funds to ensure that the assistance we offer uplifts, empowers, and restores.

But while progress is real, so are the challenges ahead. In 2025 alone, nearly 3 million refugees are projected to require resettlement — a staggering 20% increase from the previous year. This surge is driven not only by prolonged conflicts and emerging crises, but also by the escalating effects of climate change. As environments become less stable, the lines between economic displacement, climate displacement, and forced migration begin to blur — creating even more complex layers of vulnerability.

In this context, it is more important than ever that humanitarian organisations — and society at large — move beyond seeing refugees solely as victims. Their needs do not stop at survival. They include everything that gives life meaning: stability, creativity, joy, and self-actualisation. When dignity is restored, aid becomes partnership. A shelter becomes a home. And the refugee becomes the architect of their own future.

This is the essence of what TBHF stands for: a future where aid is not transactional, but transformational. Where solidarity is not charity, but shared humanity. On World Refugee Day, our message is clear — we must redefine solidarity. We must measure the success of humanitarian work not only in how many people we serve, but in how deeply we honour their agency, their voice, and their dignity.

Because without dignity, a person cannot rise — and if we strip it from others, we risk losing our own humanity in the process.

Alya Al Musaiebi is Director of The Big Heart Foundation