Refugees: not just a financial burden, but talents that benefit the country’s economy – Tatiana’s story

This is not due to a lack of motivation or willingness, but rather highlights the cost of the barriers to accessing the labour market that refugees face in host countries, including language barriers, a lack of childcare services, non-recognition of qualifications and regulations that inadvertently exclude people from employment support services. These barriers, which are often regarded as merely administrative or technical, actually come at a very high cost. Every barrier that prevents a qualified refugee from working also prevents employers from accessing talent and governments from benefiting from new taxpayers.

This is particularly relevant at a time when governments and international donors are seeking more sustainable responses to situations of protracted displacement. Whilst humanitarian aid remains essential in times of crisis, work offers something that aid alone cannot provide: the opportunity for refugees to have greater control over their own lives. Work brings dignity, income and independence; employers gain access to the talent they need; host countries strengthen their economies and ease the pressure on their budgets in the long term. Work is more than a bridge to resilience and hope. It helps people maintain their skills and resources, leaving them even better prepared for the day when they can return safely to their country of origin.

In the humanitarian and development sectors, self-sufficiency is often cited as a goal. Employment plays a central role in making this a reality.

As Barham Salih, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, stated: ‘We must measure our success by whether or not people are able to rebuild their lives.’ For millions of people forced to flee their homes, access to active employment support and decent work offers precisely this opportunity.

When I think about this debate, I think of Tatiana. Not because her story is exceptional, but precisely because it isn’t: it reflects the reality of millions of people. In Moldova and across the world, there are teachers, nurses, engineers, entrepreneurs and parents who have lost their homes but not their skills, their ambition or their determination. What they are looking for is not handouts. It is opportunity.

Moldova highlights a simple challenge: not how to support refugees indefinitely, but how to remove the barriers preventing them from contributing today. Because when refugees work, families regain stability, businesses gain skills and countries strengthen their economies.
Talent does not stop at the border.

*UNHCR Representative in the Republic of Moldova

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About the Author

Katja Saha is the UNHCR Representative in the Republic of Moldova. She holds a Master’s degree in Law from the University of Lapland in Finland, and has completed postgraduate specialisations in NGO Management and International Cooperation in Spain. Since joining UNHCR in 2003, she has held senior positions in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Europe, including regional roles at UNHCR’s headquarters in Geneva. Prior to her appointment in Moldova, she served as UNHCR Representative in Cyprus.

Information on the Joint Data Centre on Forced Displacement (JDC)

The JDC, a partnership between the World Bank and UNHCR, catalyses and brings together efforts to strengthen national statistical systems and include displaced populations in official statistics. It works to improve the availability and use of evidence-based data on forced displacement globally, ensuring that relevant analyses and data reach policy and operational decision-makers for the benefit of refugees, internally displaced persons and host communities.