Matchmaking to Find Homes for Refugees
Technology could help refugees and communities find a better fit.
The right fit.
Photographer: Christiof Stache/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
In its first-ever summit on refugees and migrants Monday, the U.N. urged member countries to do more to settle the 21.3 million refugees around the globe. If the U.N. could find a way to tackle even one small part of this problem -- the large number of available resettlement places that are not filled -- that would already be tangible progress.
Just one refugee in need of resettlement out of every 10 is offered a resettlement place, but even that paltry capacity is not being used up. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that every year since 2009 the resettlement opportunities are being wasted because the resettlement process is riddled with inefficiency.