United for connectivity: Boosting mobile and internet access for refugees

WFP and partners enhance mobile and internet connectivity at Sudan-South Sudan border, supporting refugees with critical communication tools.
Setting up communications infrastructure in Renk. Photo: WFP/South Sudan

By WFP

WFP and partners enhance mobile and internet connectivity at Sudan-South Sudan border, supporting refugees with critical communication tools.

In the chaos of conflict or disaster, one item provides a lifeline: the mobile phone. It’s not just a device; it becomes a vital connection between loved ones and a gateway to crucial information on safety and services available to people in emergencies.

Most people fleeing Sudan carry nothing more than the clothes on their backs. Yet, many who have crossed into South Sudan since the start of the conflict have found solace in one crucial possession: a mobile phone.

Many cross the border into South Sudan clutching their mobile phones, connecting them to essential safety information and where to find necessary resources. However, South Sudan has limited mobile and internet connectivity. Only 35 percent of the South Sudanese population have access to a mobile connection, and around fifteen percent have access to the internet.

Telecommunications equipment arriving at Renk airstrip. Photo: WFP/South Sudan

At the start of the crisis in Sudan, high points along the Sudan-South Sudan border became crowded with people desperately seeking a signal to send text messages to their loved ones still trapped in Sudan.

Recognizing the urgency and importance of connectivity for the families that fled Sudan, WFP’s Technology Division (TEC) in South Sudan collaborated with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as part of their humanitarian response to expand mobile communication services at the border crossings of Joda and Gerger.

The National Communications Authority (NCA) authorized the agencies to send the materials needed to set up the communications infrastructure and to use the tower locations. WFP’s Logistics Cluster and United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) transported the telecom equipment, generators, tower cross-sections, solar power equipment, and cables to the remote areas.

After they were delivered, MTN and Zain, the country’s two major mobile network operators, established communication infrastructure, extending mobile coverage to the Sudan border. Refugees and returnees can now contact their loved ones and receive vital updates, improving the community’s connectivity.

This success story of inter-agency collaboration and private sector support provides critical services to those in need and sets the stage for future partnerships.

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