With self-confidence, a refugee becomes human again

Syrian Hussein Alzribi is a lawyer, former refugee and entrepreneur through and through. During his time in a Greek refugee camp, he brought fellow refugees together in a self-organized community for more than 3,000 refugees. Once in the Netherlands, he was traumatized and disillusioned. With the help of Werkse! and Scope, he picked up the thread again and started Refugee Jumpstart Coaching, an organization that coaches refugees and gives them self-confidence in finding a new life. At the end of October, they won the ICF Global Award For Social Impact. “With small steps, I try to influence the world in a positive way.”

After spending a year in a refugee camp in Athens, the now 35-year-old Hussein arrived in the Netherlands in 2017. He immediately started learning Dutch and looking for a job, but soon discovered that his Syrian law studies were of little use in the Netherlands. “You really need to speak Dutch very well and know Dutch law if you want to be a good lawyer here,” says Hussein. He decided to go back to school and was accepted at universities in Amsterdam, Groningen and Tilburg, but doubted himself, his own abilities and his knowledge of the Dutch language, which made it impossible to study.

A life before and after the flight
He eventually ended up in Delft, on welfare and came into contact with Werkse!. At first, the contact was a bit difficult. “I realised that I wanted to start my own company and help other refugees. Not with basic necessities, but with self-confidence. There is a life before and after the flight and people change in that. Of course there are traumatic events, but because you leave everything behind, you are also completely dependent on other people for a long time. Many refugees have the idea that Europeans are a step ahead and above them. This makes it very difficult to integrate well, find a job at a good level and become an equal citizen of the Netherlands. I wanted to set up a company that would give refugees back their self-esteem, so that we could all give something back to the countries that helped us.”

Building self-confidence at Cordaid
Hussein’s first contact person from Werkse! didn’t really understand his plan and wanted him to just find a job. “She thought everything I suggested would be too difficult for me and thought I should start easy and work my way up. I had such a clear goal that I didn’t want to go along with that.” Eventually, Hussein got another contact person, Claire. “She was fantastic and understood exactly what I wanted and helped me in the right direction. Because of her, I was able to do an internship at Cordaid, which was great and really helped me rebuild my self-confidence and sharpen my plans for the future.” Hussein also worked as a volunteer for the food bank, which brought him into contact with a lot of Dutch people. “This was a crucial step in my personal growth. This is where I met Anki and Fred Smith, who made me feel like I was coming home. Anki is a coach and has helped me control my emotions and clarify my ambitions.”

No self-confidence without basic facilities
Hussein eventually came into contact with Scope through Claire. That was also a good match. In 2020, he signed a contract with Scope and a year later he started Refugee Jumpstart Coaching together with his American business partner Bev Weise. The organization works worldwide and consists of a network of more than sixty coaches from different countries who support refugees in rebuilding their lives and careers.

Hussein himself still lives in Delft, but is temporarily back in Athens, where he trains and coaches refugees in the middle of the action, so that they can rebuild their careers. “It is important that the basic facilities are good. Refugees often live in survival mode for a long time. Am I safe, is there food and drink and do I have a roof over my head are the first basic needs that people worry about every day. People sometimes complain about the Dutch government’s refugee policy and although I don’t know yet what the new cabinet will bring, the situation in many countries is really worse. In Greece, for example, the government doesn’t help people find a house. How can you ever feel safe then?”

Winner of the ICF Global Award for Social Impact
Hussein therefore started a trial last year. He ensured that several refugees were given a house for a year. He received subsidies from all over the world for this. “If people have a stable situation, there is room for peace and then development and that is where I can make a difference.” The impact that his organization makes has not gone unnoticed.