Digital service delivery case study
Refugee IVR Appointment System: Voice Access at Scale
A multilingual interactive voice response system gave refugees access to appointment services through basic phones, avoiding the app, literacy, and connectivity barriers built into many digital services.
- Organization
- UNHCR Jordan
- Period
- 2018-2024
- Role
- Data and digital delivery lead
The challenge
People seeking registration appointments faced physical queues, travel costs, uncertain availability, and channels that excluded users without smartphones, data plans, or strong written literacy.
The approach
- Use voice and standard telephony so the service works on basic handsets and low-bandwidth networks.
- Connect appointment workflows to operational records and redesign the service around exceptions rather than repeated manual handling.
- Design the service for multilingual use and transfer across different country operations.
Measured outcomes
- Used by more than 700,000 refugees.
- Reduced refugee registration service time by 83 percent.
- The service pattern was replicated in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Iran, and Ethiopia.
Governance and safeguards
- The system handled access and scheduling rather than adjudicating protection or eligibility.
- Operational staff retained authority over registration and case decisions.
- Voice access reduced dependence on smartphones and written interfaces.
Evidence and sources
The links below distinguish independently published evidence from first-person programme records.
- AI for Refugee Operations: delivered systems and evidence
First-person programme record. The public site does not currently claim independent verification for these operational metrics.