By Mayyu Foyazul Islam
In the world’s largest refugee camp—Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh—14-year-old Noor Kolima carries a dream that is both powerful and profoundly heartbreaking. A Rohingya refugee, she has endured unimaginable hardships, yet she refuses to let her circumstances define her future or silence her hopes.
A Life Marked by Loss
Noor Kolima was born in Done Pyine village, Than Ga Na Tract, Buthidaung Township, in Arakan State, Myanmar. In 2017, widespread violence against the Rohingya community forced her family to flee across the border into Bangladesh. But even in the refugee camp, safety has not meant stability.
Her struggles began early. At the age of five, Noor lost her father to a heart attack in Myanmar. Her mother remained her strength—until tragedy struck again in the camp, where Noor’s mother passed away due to the lack of proper medical care.
Now, Noor and her mentally disabled brother survive alone, without parental support or consistent aid from others.
“Sometimes, I study. Sometimes, I go outside searching for my brother,” she says. “He doesn’t always come home on time. I have to take time away from my studies just to make sure he eats.”
In the refugee camps, education is available up to Grade 12, but beyond that, opportunities vanish. Noor dreams of becoming a doctor to serve her people—but with no financial support and no parents to guide her, that dream hangs in uncertainty.
A Determined Pursuit of Education
Despite overwhelming odds, Noor remains determined. She recently completed Grade 8 and is preparing to enter Grade 9 at Mayyu High School (MHS) in Jamtoli Camp 15. For Noor, education is more than survival—it is a pathway to rewrite her people’s future.
“I want to become a doctor for my community because we don’t have enough qualified doctors,” she says with quiet conviction. “I want to help vulnerable women who suffer at home without proper healthcare.”
Her ambition is rooted in deep personal pain.
“Losing my beloved mother was the most traumatic experience of my life. I felt hopeless and helpless. I never want another Rohingya child to go through what I did.”
Financial hardship threatens to end her education prematurely. While some of her friends dream of university, Noor knows she may not get the chance. Worse still, some peers sow seeds of doubt:
“You can’t become a doctor,” they tell her. “You have no parents to support you. You won’t go to university.”
Yet, Noor refuses to surrender.
“Education is the only thing that can break the suffering of my people,” she says. “Education can even free those who suffer in silence, those trapped like prisoners.”
Noor is not fighting for herself alone—she is fighting for every Rohingya girl whose voice has been silenced, for every mother who has endured pain without dignity or care.
Hope Against the Odds
Noor Kolima’s story is one of extraordinary resilience. Despite losing both parents, despite living in a fragile shelter with no stable support, she clings fiercely to hope.
“I will hold onto my dream until my last breath,” she says.
Her voice represents countless Rohingya girls who, despite overwhelming hardship, dare to dream. Noor deserves the same opportunities as any other child—the right to learn, to heal, and to build a future free from the injustices that have marked her past.
Her story is a reminder that even amidst suffering, the human spirit can remain unbroken—and that hope, even in its most fragile form, can illuminate the darkest corners of the world.
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