Join us for a journey into the Far North Region of Cameroon to meet five women who have traversed immense tragedies and emerged as resilient leaders, survivors and entrepreneurs.

Christine Banlog has been a market woman for 22 years. She is now 64, widowed, and raising her three grandchildren in Nyalla, Cameroon.

The health of our oceans is declining. This threatens the lives, livelihood and food security of billions of people. For island communities and those living around oceans and seas, the risk are even greater. Recently, UN Women visited the island nation of Seychelles, in the Indian Ocean Rim region, where ocean-based tourism is the backbone of the economy and men and women rely on the ocean for sustainable living. Women are also leading marine conservation and sustainable use of the ocean in Seychelles. This photo essay provides a glimpse into their efforts and impact.

Rural Liberian women are promoting renewable solar energy that reduces dependency on expensive and polluting fossil fuels, like kerosene.

Through scenes of daily life in the Gado-Badzere and Ngam refugee camps in Cameroon, here is a showcase of the lives of women in the camp, their social and community bonds, and how they are using UN Women’s safe spaces, psychosocial support and business trainings.

Burundi’s ongoing political turmoil has caused hundreds of thousands to flee their homes and seek shelter in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). At the Lusenda refugee camp, which is home to more than 16,000 refugees, the majority are women and girls. Hundreds of refugees have come to the Safe Haven multipurpose centres for protection and economic and social empowerment, established by UN Women . Here’s a glimpse into daily life at the camp and the centres.

To the world they are known as “refugees”. Nameless, faceless, all the same. But each of them have a different story to tell, of their lives, who they lost, and how got here.