Singaporean team creates winning app for refugees

SINGAPORE – Some refugees, despite being able to earn basic income and afford rent in their host countries, often find it hard to obtain leases for long-term housing due to their perceived lack of financial credibility.

But they could soon get some help – in the form of a mobile application that records their employment and income, as well as payment history, which shows whether they are a lending risk due to past missed payments.

Based on this, the app then generates a score that indicates their level of financial credibility.

Created by Singaporean Rushika Shekhar, 27, and her four teammates from Georgetown University in Washington, the tool could help refugees with high scores to obtain leases for longterm housing that landlords would otherwise be reluctant to grant.

“We realised that many potential landlords had negative views of refugees even if they were perfectly able to afford housing,” said Ms Shekhar, who is studying for a master’s degree in international development at Georgetown University.

The group then worked under the guidance of their mentor, Mr Gege Gatt, CEO of tech startup Ebo, to create the app.

Ms Shekhar took charge of the design aspect of the app. Within days, the team created the app named Credit/Ability.

The project beat eight other entries in the Migrants and Refugees category of VHacks, a firstof- its-kind hackathon with a focus on global affairs.

Since winning the competition, various large technology corporations have approached the team, expressing interest in implementing the app. The team is currently looking into how it can work with these companies to make the app a reality. – The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited / Herald Malaysia (Reprinted with permission)