Norwich Café playing its part in helping refugees and asylum seekers
- joebunker
- Feb 23, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 2
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine reaches its one year anniversary, more than 8 million Ukrainian refugees have been recorded across Europe.
But one café in Norwich has been helping refugees and asylum seekers gain valuable employment skills as they start their new lives in this country.
The Zainab Project is a café run by volunteers and is offering employment to refugees and asylum seekers to develop their skills to increase their chances of success in future employment.
Sumeyhat Musa-Akanbi, an asylum seeker herself from Nigeria, was one of the first volunteers to start helping out with the project.
She said, “I love it because I am contributing in my own little way to help others.”
“We train them in different ways… we train them in the kitchen… we train them in the café.”
“We try to make them feel at home, like they are welcome.”
She also went on to explain how the project offers various different programmes to the asylum and refugee communities in the city, including workshops on how to register for a GP and access NHS healthcare.
On the 6th February the Zainab Project also ran a knitting group, to help refugee and asylum seekers come together and help them integrate into the local community.
Sumeyhat said that since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 they have seen a number of Ukrainian refugees attending the community programmes.
The Zainab project was co-founded last year by Sarah Wyn, who realised there was a need for work experience and voluntary work for the refugee and asylum seeker community here in Norwich.
The Café, which is located on Hall Road, offers a range of different food, including falafel wraps, baklava and lentil soup, with all the proceeds going back into the project.
It’s open on Thursday’s from 11AM to 6PM and on Friday’s and Saturday’s from 10AM to 4PM.
I think it's fantastic that Norwich Café is playing its part in helping refugees and asylum seekers. It's heartwarming to see individuals and organizations come together to support those in need, especially those who have had to flee their homes and face difficult circumstances. The fact that the café is using its resources and platform to make a positive impact is truly inspiring and sets an excellent example for others to follow. We should all strive to do what we can to help those in need and create a more inclusive and supportive community. Kudos to Norwich Café for taking action and making a difference!
Looks like a nice place to find out about the world.