Twenty-one-year-old Sarah left Eritrea in search of asylum in Sweden and arrived in Cairo in 2013. The first thing she did upon arrival was go to the Cordi Jesu Church downtown. Sarah does not speak English or Arabic. In her small bag, she carried unlimited fear of the unknown awaiting her in this big Egyptian city. She was worried about the possibility of returning to her village on the borders with Ethiopia.

Twenty-one-year-old Sarah left Eritrea in search of asylum in Sweden and arrived in Cairo in 2013. The first thing she did upon arrival was go to the Cordi Jesu Church downtown. Sarah does not speak English or Arabic. In her small bag, she carried unlimited fear of the unknown awaiting her in this big Egyptian city. She was worried about the possibility of returning to her village on the borders with Ethiopia.

However, all of her worries dissipated when she arrived in the emergency area at the address that was written in English on a small piece of paper, which proved as important as her passport.

“I felt myself at home and I was very relieved,” Sarah said when she arrived at the Cordi Jesu Church. “I have met many women friends from my country who helped me find a room and a job and contact to a lawyer who works on refugee cases.”

Sarah works as a babysitter for a family in the New Egypt area. On weekends, she goes to the church not only to pray but also to meet her friends, receive newcomers from her country and to help them the way she was helped by others when she arrived here three years ago. 

Sarah originally came to Egypt to contact the Swedish Embassy regarding her asylum in Sweden, but her case has still not yet been completed. Now, the 24-year-old is working illegally in Egypt as a refugee without social security or a residence permit while pursuing her asylum case.