Digital tools are vital for refugees hoping to start a new life

When Lily Eftetahi arrived in Greece three years ago as a refugee from Iran, she spoke neither Greek nor English. She had countless questions about how to start a new life as a refugee, but wasn’t sure who to ask for accurate answers. 

That changed when she discovered Refugee.Info, a set of digital resources for refugees and asylum seekers in Greece, Italy, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Hungary who want to know how they can work, which documents they need, whether they can receive cash assistance, and how they can learn the language of their newly adopted country. Trained moderators provide refugees with up-to-date information and referrals. 

“Even if I had known the language, for a person who comes from another country, especially another continent, the rules and rights are very confusing,” Eftetahi wrote in an email. “[T]henIreached out to Refugee.Info and asked all the questions that I had.They answered me very quickly, thoroughly and in my own language.”

Eftetahi, who is now the deputy moderation manager for Refugee.Info, said the information made it possible to obtain the right work documents within days. 

Refugee.Info is part of a platform called Signpost, a digital initiative launched by the International Rescue Committee and Mercy Corps in 2015 that’s since reached refugees and asylum seekers in three continents and seven countries. It recently notched an important milestone: serving 1 million people. 

Signpost originally launched as Refugee.Info, an app for people arriving on the shores of Greece. It included a geo-locator for refugees who may not have known their destination. The app has since been put aside in favor of a website and social media outreach, because users preferred a lighter-weight mobile experience. While refugees may leave t