Date: 28, 2026
By Jainuka 
A freelance journalist and storyteller 

This is Habiba, a 16-year-old Rohingya girl from Myanmar who has been living in a refugee camp in Bangladesh since 2017. She fled Myanmar with her family after the genocidal violence and persecution against the Rohingya forced hundreds of thousands of people to seek safety across the border.

Today, Habiba lives in Refugee Camp 16, Block A-2, where she studies in Grade 10 at a community school. Like many Rohingya children growing up in the camps, her education has been shaped by uncertainty, limited opportunities, and difficult living conditions.

Life is not easy for Habiba and her family. She lives with her mother and sister, who are very important to her. Five years ago, Habiba lost her father. His death changed her family’s life, leaving her mother with the responsibility of caring for the family and supporting her children.

Since then, her mother has worked tirelessly to keep the family going and to make sure Habiba can continue her education. Even when life becomes difficult, her mother continues to encourage her daughter to study and hold on to her dreams.

For Habiba, education is more than attending school. It represents hope, dignity, and the possibility of creating a better future.

Despite the many challenges around her, Habiba refuses to give up. She dreams of becoming a teacher one day. She wants to teach children in her community and especially encourage girls to continue their education despite the barriers they face.

Habiba believes that education can change lives. She wants to become someone who can inspire children to dream beyond the limitations of the refugee camp and help them understand the value of learning.

Her dream is also deeply connected to her own experience. Having grown up with limited educational opportunities, Habiba understands how important teachers can be in giving children confidence, guidance, and hope.

She knows the path ahead will not be easy. Access to higher education and professional opportunities remains extremely limited for Rohingya refugees. Yet Habiba continues to study, carrying the hope that one day she will be able to continue her education beyond Grade 10.

Her mother’s sacrifices give her strength, while her dream gives her a reason to keep moving forward.

Habiba hopes that one day she will stand in front of a classroom not as a student, but as a teacher, helping children learn, encouraging girls to stay in school, and giving the next generation of Rohingya children the hope of a better future.

For now, she continues to study inside the refugee camp, holding tightly to a dream that is bigger than her circumstances: to become a teacher and use education to bring hope to her community.