Melton residents marked Refugee Week with a council-led celebration on Thursday.
The event at the Melton Community Hall featured entertainment from refugee groups, cultural food and stories from refugees and people seeking asylum.
South Sudanese refugee Sobur Dhieu spoke at the event, sharing her journey to becoming an inspiring young community leader in Australia.
Refugee Week is held annually from June 18-24 to provide an opportunity or the Australian public to celebrate the immense courage, resilience and valuable contributions people of refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds make to Australian society.
The theme for Refugee Week 2023 is #Finding Freedom, highlighting the journey refugees take to find freedom, whether it be through a new home, a new career or friendships.
Melton council said it organised this year’s Refugee Week event to celebrate the contribution of people from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds to the community.
The municipality has a diverse population with 40 per cent of residents born overseas according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data from the 2021 Census, up from 36 per cent at the 2016 Census.
The Census data also shows that 55 per cent of Melton residents had both of their parents born overseas, up from 47 per cent in 2016.
