Ericsson demonstrated how ICT aids in reconnecting refugees at The World Economic Forum 2015

During the World Economic Forum, Ericsson addressed the growing refugee crisis in a public session attended by the media. The session covered questions of how international and regional organizations can adequately respond to the deepening refugee crisis, including dimensions such as donor mechanisms, host country resilience as well as security through education.

Nearly 400,000 refugees and internally displaced people have registered with www.refunite.org since the official launch in 2008, making it the biggest global platform for missing persons. As the lead technology partner, Ericsson is helping to develop the platform, which helps refugees use mobile phones to register themselves, search for loved ones and reconnect via an anonymous database. The Refugees United service in East Africa, where the service is already live through mobile operators in Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Somaliland, has registered some 280,000 refugees on the service and Refugees United estimates that hundreds of families have been reunited. 

Furthermore Refugees United, the International Rescue Committee, Zain and Ericsson launched the Family Reconnection Project in South Sudan using simple mobile technology to support 1.4 million people who are internally displaced. The pilot is expected to generate 10,000 registrations during 2015. The partners aim to replicate the program across five other camps in Africa and the Middle East this year.

”The reality of the Networked Society is that global, regional and industry developments are completely intertwined. It is our responsibility as corporate citizens to engage with each other, on an organizational level, to discuss the pressing issues affecting today’s global population. The World Economic Forum engages us to undertake global issues in light of the fact that technological revolutions are disrupting our conventional decision-making processes, and to work together to use this technology for good.” said Rafiah Ibrahim, President Ericsson region Middle East and North East Africa.

The World Economic Forum is an International Institution committed to improving the state of the world through public-private cooperation. It engages political, business, academic and other leaders of society in collaborative efforts to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Together with its stakeholders, the Forum works to define challenges, solutions and actions, always in the spirit of global citizenship. It serves and builds sustained communities through an integrated concept of high-level meetings, research networks, task forces and digital collaboration.