Armin Talebi, along with his parents, refugees from Afghanistan, moved to the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan in 2006. Armin was only six years old, but he still remembers how difficult the move was. His parents could not find a job and permanent housing, Armin had difficulties at school because […]
Armin Talebi, along with his parents, refugees from Afghanistan, moved to the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan in 2006. Armin was only six years old, but he still remembers how difficult the move was. His parents could not find a job and permanent housing, Armin had difficulties at school because the family did not have documents. Despite everything, the Armin family did not give up in the face of challenges and continued to move forward.
Armin successfully graduated from school and entered the medical university. He is now in his third year and dreams of becoming an oncological surgeon. Besides, Armin has his own business, which is also his hobby: Amin is a hairdresser.
“In 11th grade, I realized that I would soon become a student and I did not want to depend on my parents and bother them. I decided that I wanted to work. I understood that I could not work as a waiter or someone else, I felt that this was not for me. I thought I could do more and I had to do something else. And I decided to go to the hairdressing school, and I did. It was very difficult. It was not easy because you had to study and retrain, then you had to improve your skills. ”
Armin’s path cannot be called easy, but that did not stop him from going forward and not giving up. There was no fear that something might not work out, there was only the fear of not trying and missing the opportunity. Armin’s parents always supported him in all his endeavors.
The parents said: ” If you try, and everything works out, it will be good. If it does not work out – it will become your experience. ” It motivated me, and I took a risk, I kept working and every day I realized that it was getting more and more exciting and I like doing it, and every day I kept sharpening my skills. Through video lessons on Youtube, many workshops, I went through advanced training and improved in this area, “says Armin.
After participating in a multitude of workshops, Armin felt ready and decided to take a new step – opening of his own salon. To do that, he saved up some money, found space to rent, found masters whom he later taught. Today, Armin is a young businessman, the owner of a barbershop, and he combines all this with studying at a medical university with a degree in oncological surgery. And this is not the limit, because there are still many goals ahead that he wants to achieve.
“Advice not only to the refugees, but to all people, especially young ones: nothing is impossible. You just have to do it. You need to take risks, do something new, learn something. Because the best investment is investing in yourself. The more skills you have, the better for you. If you need to learn languages, go and learn languages. Don’t put any barriers or ceilings. Always achieve more and strive to reach new peaks. ”
Armin has lived in Kazakhstan all his conscious life and is filled with a sense of gratitude towards the country and the people, he appreciates and loves the local culture. In Kazakhstan, he acquired a second homeland, which he does not want to leave.
UNHCR in Kazakhstan has been providing legal assistance to asylum-seekers and refugees through its partners since 1995. Armin is one of 510 refugees living in Kazakhstan, the vast majority of whom are from Afghanistan. Many refugees had higher education and were qualified professionals, but because of their status could not find formal employment.
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