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The latest apps might seem to only be addictive games, but every so often a new app comes along with a tangible and admirable social purpose.
Enter Tarjimly, the app which promises to help a refugee’s already difficult journey. It does so by tackling one key area: language.
Translation issues plague refugees whenever they are travelling to new countries, so Tarjimly connects up volunteer translators with the refugees and immigrants who need the help. Working as a Facebook Messenger bot, the app aims to help refugees successfully have important conversations with doctors, aid workers, legal representatives and the like.
Tarjimly – Tarjimly updated their cover photo. | Facebook
The app currently offers Arabic translations, but Pashto, Farsi, Urdu and other languages will be added soon. So far, over 1,200 translators have signed up to the service. You have to write and speak two or more languages at least a colloquial level to qualify.
Tarjimly has been created by three Muslim American MIT graduates. Co-founder Atif Javed has stressed the necessity of translators, especially in the wake of Trump’s executive orders on immigration. In a Facebook post, Javed writes: “Tarjimly can be a tool to fight this #MuslimBan and refugee crisis, giving average people a way to help those most vulnerable.”
Atif Javed – While Trump bans immigrants and refugees,… | Facebook
The connection made between refugee and translator is anonymous, and refugees can rate their session at its end.
The app is still in its infancy, but has the potential to be widely rolled out and lend a huge helping hand to those who need it.
