Yangon, Myanmar — In a country where conflict, displacement and disaster intersect daily, humanitarian work is often described in numbers. But for the frontline responders who serve Myanmar’s most vulnerable communities, numbers are never the full story.
In early 2024, UNFPA began investing in the strategic and meaningful initiative: training frontline humanitarian responders to tell stories — ethically, responsibly, and with respect .
What started as field-level “storytelling” training in Kachin, Rakhine, Shan, and Kayin States has grown into a wider movement that has been convening annually, in 2025 and 2026, during the granting of the UNFPA Humanitarian Storytelling Awards events.
At its core, the initiative asks a simple question:
How do we ensure that the lived realities of women and girls are heard — without causing harm?
Restoring the Human Dimension
“In a crisis as complex and protracted as Myanmar’s, we often speak in numbers,” said Gwyn Lewis, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar at the 2026 awards ceremony. “These figures matter. They help us plan, advocate, and mobilise assistance. But numbers alone cannot convey what it means for a mother to reach care when roads are unsafe, for a girl to stay in school when her family is under strain, or for a survivor of violence to seek help when stigma and fear are constant companions.”
Gwyn added: “Stories—told ethically and with care—restore the human dimension. They remind us that humanitarian action is ultimately about dignity, rights, and lives.”
The storytelling initiative was designed around that principle.
Through 12 structured trainings across Kachin, Rakhine, Kayin, Shan, Mandalay and Yangon between 2024 and 2025, frontline responders learned not only how to write compelling narratives, but how to:
- Apply do-no-harm principles
- Use non-stigmatising language
- Apply disability inclusive content
- Link human stories to humanitarian impact
The goal was not visibility, but accountability to affected communities.
Stories That Protect, Not Expose
For Naw Dorise Day and Naing Naing Nay Thazin, the training reshaped how they approached documentation.
Their award-winning story, A Day of Joy, follows Ma Maw Oo, a 42-year-old woman in Sagaing Region who feared she might not survive childbirth amid insecurity and blocked roads. When her blood pressure rose dangerously during labour, a trained village midwife coordinated urgent referral — ensuring she reached the hospital in time to deliver safely.
The story was selected not only because of its emotional power, but because it clearly demonstrates how community-based referral systems protect lives when access is fragile.
One of the storytellers reflected after receiving the award, “Through the training, we learned how to centre the community’s voice — not just their condition. It changed how we listen.”
Similarly, in Shan State, Hnin Pwint Soe documented the journey of a woman who experienced intimate partner violence and had long believed violence and abuse were “normal.”
Writing this story required great care to protect her safety, privacy and dignity. The storytelling must never expose women and girls to further harm.”
Her story, Journey to the Light, shows how the gender-based violence services are essential and community awareness sessions can shift mindsets and reduce isolation for survivors — without sensationalising trauma.
From Training to Recognition
The first UNFPA Storytelling Awards were held with participation of community storytellers and donor agencies in February 2025 in Yangon — marking a shift from training delivery to institutional recognition.
The initiative had expanded into broader storytelling topics such as child focused storytelling, disability inclusive storytelling, etc., and strengthened partnerships with different UN agencies, women organizations and civil society organizations;
One such story, The First Step Toward a Brighter Future, documented the rehabilitation journey of seven-year-old Nan Kham Sett, who regained mobility and returned to school after disability screening and physiotherapy support.
This story reminded us that inclusion is not abstract. It is about a child walking back into a classroom with confidence.
And in Mandalay Region, Nan Hnin Yu Yu Lwin documented how a midwife’s intervention after the 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar prevented a threatened miscarriage and saved the life of the affected woman — turning fear into survival.
“These stories inform our collective understanding, strengthen accountability to affected communities, and help us advocate for the resources that are urgently needed,” Gwyn emphasised.
Ethical Storytelling as Humanitarian Practice
The initiative has gone beyond putting forward powerful narratives. It has:
- Strengthened coherence among humanitarian partners
- Elevated frontline responders as knowledge holders
- Strengthened storytelling standards in communications
- Enhanced localisation of humanitarian voice
Ethical communication is not simply about visibility. It is about doing no harm, protecting individuals and communities, and ensuring that voices are represented with consent, accuracy, and respect.
For the awardees, the recognition affirmed a deeper responsibility.
“Through the training, we learned that every story carries responsibility—to tell it truthfully, ethically, and with respect.”
A Call to Act
The Humanitarian Storytelling Awards 2026 honoured eight outstanding narratives. But the broader impact lies beyond the award.
In a humanitarian landscape where fatigue can set in and crises stretch on, ethical storytelling reconnects with affected people from the communities.
It reminds decision-makers that behind every data point is a human life navigating uncertainty and challenges—and often extraordinary resilience.
As the ceremony concluded, the message resonated clearly:
Stories are not simply records of hardship or resilience.
They are calls to act — to protect rights, uphold dignity, and invest in hope.
And in Myanmar today, those calls are being written — carefully, courageously — by the very frontline responders who serve their communities every day.
