Turkcell has announced the launching of its mobile application “Merhaba Umut” – “Hello Hope” to facilitate the integration of Syrian refugees living in Turkey.
The app has a Turkish language learning component, instant audio translation between Turkish and Arabic, a frequently asked questions section which offers guidance on essential issues like registration and access to services and one-click access to Turkcell’s Arabic language call centre.
Turkcell CEO Kaan Terzioglu stated that Turkey has shifted the conversation about Syrian refugees from basic survival to integration a long time ago: “With Syria in ruins, having the chance of a safe and meaningful life now requires a prospect of integration for Syrian refugees. Communication technologies are powerful tools to meet the challenges of integration, including living in a country with a different language, accessing education and having employment prospects.”
He added: “I am proud to note that Turkcell has been a pioneer in mobilising the power of communication in one of the biggest humanitarian challenges of our time. Our new app ‘Hello Hope’ will be the basis of our future work to use connectivity to bring essential services to the Syrian community in Turkey.”
With about 3 million Syrian refugees, Turkey is the world’s top refugee-hosting country. Serving about 1.2 million Syrian customers, Turkcell is the operator of choice for Syrian refugees. The company operates Turkey’s first bilingual call centre, serving customers in Arabic language. It has invested heavily in its network both in the urban centres near the border zone, and in refugee camps which host about 10% of the Syrian population living in Turkey.
With Turkcell Academy’s “Hello Hope” app, Turkcell now takes its services-focused approach to serve a community for which communications technologies have been a lifeline. The app is available on iOS and Android platforms.
