From refugee to aid worker

Ammar has worked with World Vision for just over six months. His job is to help people who have been displaced within Iraq, so they can access food vouchers to feed their families. This is the first job he has had as a humanitarian and he told us his story:

“I used to think that I knew everything about displaced people and refugees because I had experienced similar situations at various times during my life. I was born an Iraqi refugee in Iran. I didn’t have any chance to go to college, nor could my parents get a job. We could not travel outside the country or buy a car or a house, even after many years of living in the country, because we didn’t have, nor could we get, a national ID.

"I was born an Iraqi refugee in Iran. I didn’t have any chance to go to college, nor could my parents get a job."

“As a refugee, I carried a green card that had no value other than police identification. Years back, I returned to Iraq with my family. We lived first in Baghdad and then Erbil. Even after all these years, I feel we have not fully settled down.  In fact, my whole life, all of 35 years, have been filled with uncertainty.

“Once, when, while helping interpret for some World Vision guests, I felt a special connection with a displaced girl named Shahad. She said she wanted to become a doctor, but had no idea when the war would end so she can begin to pick up the pieces of her future. I remember I felt the same when a bus took us from Iran back to Iraq and dropped us off at the border. I was 14 at the time and had a lot of dreams, but the future seemed hazy.

"My belief that I know everything about displaced people started to disappear when I became an aid worker with World Vision"

“What made our family strong was my parent’s pragmatic and down-to-earth attitude towards life and our condition. My father has a good sense of humour; he gave us choices and was always open to other ideas. He looked at life in a very positive light. My mother is very supportive and would always remind us not to give up on what we wanted in life.

“My belief that I know everything about displaced people started to disappear when I became an aid worker with World Vision and worked with these people, whom I have identified with myself. I still have so many things to learn about the realities of life, especially in Iraq.

"Every day, there is something to learn about how to be a better person; the key is patience, faith and hope."

“After nearly seven months of working in World Vision, I have begun to love aid work. I go through the challenges of responding to the displaced people’s requests and complaints and try to understand. I have been there. Often I need to impose order because the line is long and everyone needs to be attended to quickly. In my mind, however, I know everyone deserves to be listened to.

“Every day, there is something to learn about how to be a better person; the key is patience, faith and hope. Hope is important. It is what keeps me going and what will take me to the future I want for me and my family."

For his security, we are unable to show Ammar's face or use his last name.