Blocked, blanked, locked out: Tech stymies South African refugees

Migrants are silhouetted inside a waiting tent to get an appointment at the central registration center for refugees and asylum seekers (LaGeSo) in Berlin, Germany. High Internet costs, low digital literacy and corruption are barriers to the vulnerable accessing government services. — AP

JOHANNESBURG: As if life weren’t hard enough for refugees trying to forge a new life in South Africa, the online system set up to help them has thrown a big, new barrier their way.

Experts say that government technology is not fit for purpose, arbitrarily rejecting pleas for help and slowing aid to eligible refugees and millions of local welfare recipients.