Refugee House began with what our founder, Barnabas Samuel John Gubeke, saw during years of frontline work in the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement.
Working closely with young people, families, and community leaders, he witnessed firsthand how displaced populations navigate daily challenges while fiercely holding onto their ambitions. He saw both the structural limitations placed on refugee communities and the extraordinary potential locked within them.
He saw brilliant ideas that never reached support systems, natural leaders who lacked platforms, and vibrant businesses that struggled to scale despite clear talent and determination.
These realities forged a conviction: refugee response must go beyond mere survival. It must actively enable self-reliance, leadership, and sustainable systems of opportunity.
A house in the truest sense
That is why it is a house: a shared space where refugees can think, organize, create, and lead. A home for ideas, initiatives, and impact, where lived experience becomes the very foundation for policy, cultural heritage, enterprise, and innovation.