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Aurora Prize Laureate  Marguerite Barankitse will participate in the World Humanitarian Summit, convened by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon from 23 to 24 May  in Istanbul, Turkey.  

As auroraprize.com reports, In her first public address Barankitse will discuss how grassroots initiatives in conflict-afflicted communities are influencing humanitarian engagement and shifting the rules of engagement in the ‘People at the Centre’ Special Session.  

Outlining the objectives for the session, the United Nations states: “The Summit must mark a major shift in humanitarian action to truly empower affected people as the driving force of any humanitarian response.”
Having rescued over 30,000 orphaned children during the years of civil war in Burundi, Marguerite is living proof of the power of one individual to effect change for thousands.

Her approach is one of empowerment, “It is the local people who determine the kind of future that they want to build,” Marguerite Barankitse explains. “My organization Maison Shalom is now trying to finance education for refugees. I want them to go back to Burundi as doctors and agronomists, not as rebels with weapons in their hands. It’s about giving young people hope and a life with dignity.”

To remind, Marguerite Barankitse from Maison Shalom and REMA Hospital in Burundi was named as the inaugural Laureate of the $1 million Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. At a ceremony held in Yerevan, on April 24 Barankitse was recognized for the extraordinary impact she has had in saving thousands of lives and caring for orphans and refugees during the years of civil war in Burundi.