Tresor named UN ambassador

LuQuLuQu was conceived with the aim to bring Africans together. The campaign is a collaborative effort between the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and influential Africans.

“It is a borderless movement that aims to redefine a better way of giving and involve for the first time on a global level, individuals to recreate the narrative of the African refugee,” communication officer at UNHCR Kenya Catherine Wachiaya wrote in an article.

Tresor, who has also been a refugee, will take the role of a ‘high-level influencer’ and be responsible for advocacy about the struggles and challenges that refugees go through.

“Having been a refugee myself for so many years, I truly understand the struggle for simple basic life needs,” Tresor said. “To have organisations like the UNHCR on the continent is truly a blessing. I'm honoured that they have identified me as a suitable voice to advocate for refugees on the continent and I look forward to playing a role that can positively affect the lives of refugees."

Prior to the announcement, Tresor visited the Dzalega refugee camp in Lilongwe, Malawi. The camp, which is made up of refuges from countries such as thee DRC, Burundi and Rwanda, among others, has been around for 25 years.

“There is a generation that doesn't know anything beyond the camp since their birth due to restricted movements but always pushing themselves to be great,” Tresor said in an Instagram post.

“I met a young Rwandan lady who arrived in the camp when she was two years old in 1999 and a young Congolese man who got married and started a family in the camp few years ago. They both received scholarships and are relocating to Canada to start a whole new life with their loved ones.”

The Johannesburg launch of the LuQuLuQu was the fifth since its inaugural launch in Accra, Ghana on 4 November. Other cities in which the #DoItLuQuLuQu campaign was unveiled include Nairobi, Abidjan, Lagos and Dakar.