MTN Group and UNHCR Partner to Expand Digital and Financial Inclusion for Displaced Populations Across Africa MTN Group has entered into a multi-year Memorandum of Understanding with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to provide essential connectivity and digital services to refugees, asylum seekers, and internally displaced persons. This partnership aims to dismantle the systemic barriers that often exclude displaced communities from the digital economy, such as the lack of formal identification, high costs of devices, and limited network coverage in host areas. By expanding resilient infrastructure and making data more affordable, the initiative seeks to ensure that vulnerable populations can access life-saving information, education, and humanitarian assistance.
The collaboration will focus heavily on financial inclusion by leveraging mobile money services and remittance enablement, alongside programs for digital literacy and skills development. Implementation is set to begin in Rwanda, Uganda, and South Sudan, with a structured roadmap to scale across other markets where MTN operates. With over 20 million displaced people currently residing in countries within the provider’s footprint, the joint effort is a key component of the global “Connectivity for Refugees” initiative, which targets connecting 20 million forcibly displaced people by the year 2030.
