The Mexican businessman Pablo Moreno Cadena, director of the Mabe appliance firm, will be one of the recipients this year of the Nansen Award, the highest distinction of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), for his work integrating Central American refugees into the firm’s staff, with a presence in more than 70 countries.
As announced by UNHCR in a statement, Moreno will receive one of the four regional awards in this edition, the one dedicated to America, for his active role in helping MABE hire hundreds of refugees in its workforce, which has made him a “pioneer in inclusion” in Mexico.
“Refugees from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, many of them fleeing violence and instability, have found in MABE not only employment, but also dignity, security and purpose,” the United Nations agency stressed.
UNHCR also highlighted that Moreno’s work “has contributed to changing mindsets across the business sector and redefining what it means to be a responsible employer in a time of global displacement, inspiring more than 650 companies in Mexico to adopt inclusive hiring practices.”
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In addition to the award to Moreno, UNHCR will award four other awards at a ceremony to be held on December 16 in Geneva.
The overall prize in this edition goes to Cameroonian local leader Martin Azia Sodea, whose village welcomed numerous refugees fleeing conflict and violence in the neighboring Central African Republic, “turning his small town into a symbol of solidarity.”
The European Nansen Prize will be received by the Ukrainian organization Proliska, which has helped 3.2 million people displaced by the war, while the Iraqi activist Taban Shoresh is the winner for the Middle East and Maghreb region and the Afghan Negara Azari will receive the Asia-Pacific regional award.
UNHCR’s highest distinction, awarded since 1954, takes its name from the Norwegian explorer and pioneer in the fight for refugee rights Fridtjof Nansen (1861-1930), the first international high commissioner for the protection of that group in the League of Nations, the organization that preceded the UN.
The Brazilian nun, social activist and lawyer Rosita Milesi was the recipient of the global award last year, and in previous editions the one awarded to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2022 is remembered.
With information from EFE
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