Meet Arissa Jemima Ikram Ismail and Davina Devarajan, two law students in Malaysia helping Rohingya women integrate into the local community by teaching them to read and write.
It all started when Arissa, 23, a volunteer at a relief agency, was approached by a refugee leader to help ‘uplift’ the women in the community. Arissa and Davina, 25, went to the leader's neighbourhood outside Kuala Lumpur. There, they quickly realised how many women wanted to learn English and Malay to help them become independent with daily tasks, like shopping or seeking medical advice in a country where they don’t know the language.
The dynamic duo formed the Women for Refugees group in September 2020, recruiting 20 volunteer teachers via Instagram to give free weekly two-hour classes from a rundown two-story block that houses around 50 migrant families. They're already recruiting more volunteers, and are planning to extend their classes to include technical skills that could help these women earn an income.
“It's essential for us to not pitch the refugee women as a charity, where they are constantly requiring external aid,” says Arissa. “We want to equip them with the necessary skills so that they can sustain themselves and contribute back to the community.”
