Alexandra Aparicio, REFUNITE’s East Africa Project Manager recently returned to Nairobi in Kenya from South Sudan where she spent three months leading a team of dedicated Outreach Volunteers.

In Juba, the capital of South Sudan, REFUNITE and the International Rescue Committee manage a mobile pilot project, which aims to reconnect families separated by the conflict in South Sudan. The country is home to more than 1.4 million internally displaced people. Below are six reflections from her experience at the camps:

Despite the dire situation that the refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) find themselves in, they try to keep their routine as normal as possible. Life must go on.

I had a great opportunity to learn about the Nuer culture (the Nuer people live in the Nile Valley in South Sudan and are also found in southwestern Ethiopia). I would work on a daily basis with our team in the field as well as the displaced families and get involved in fun games initiated by them. Their resilience inspired me. They still try to live a normal life and don’t get discouraged by the challenges they face.

In Juba, I learned that there is need for a tool that can make it easier for elderly and families to reconnect with their missing loved ones. Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is a technology that allows a computer to interact with humans through the use of speech recognition. The REFUNITE mobile search tool currently does not support IVR.

The strength of the families in the camps amazed and inspired me. I met several women who left other refugee camps and settlements to return to South Sudan but later found themselves caught up again in the civil war. Sometimes I remember the stories they shared with me and the painful look in their faces. Despite these experiences, they move on with their lives and remain hopeful of a better future.

REFUNITE’s new mobile search tool will support a large number of  displaced families who don’t have access to the internet. The mobile search tool empowers separated families to search, connect and communicate through a mobile phone. The families I met were excited to learn that their missing loved ones, who may be in remote areas, will be able to register, search and be found via REFUNITE.

Connect with Alexandra and share your ideas: aa@refunite.org