August 27, 2014 — In mid-July, REFUNITE’s Africa Director Nishant Shah visited Dadaab Refugee Camp in Kenya. Home to more than 330,000  Somali refugees, Dadaab is a critical location for REFUNITE’s Outreach Volunteers, who register separated families through mobile phones. On his visit, Nishant met with the outreach team, as well as community leaders in the camp and representatives from REFUNITE partner, the Kenya Red Cross Society. Meeting participants discussed current goals and possibilities for future innovations as we work to register one million forcibly displaced people by 2015. 

 Check out Nishant’s photos for the on-the-ground view of Dadaab.

Nishant also met with community leaders throughout Dadaab to discuss our work and what we can do to improve our family reconnection platform.

The trip provided insight into how we can shape our outreach efforts and deploy our resources to reach as many refugees as possible. Conversations with the Outreach Volunteers centered around the use of USSD technology, which allows users to register from cell phones without internet access. 

Much of the trip was organized by Fatnah, the indefatigable and incredibly committed leader of our teams in Dadaab. 

Last, and certainly not least, Nishant would like to mention that it was an opportunity to awkwardly watch The Steve Harvey Show on a big screen in the middle of the night.