Can technology help more survivors of sexual assault in South Sudan?

Five months ago, an Israel-based organisation in South Sudan piloted a chatbot it created on WhatsApp.

After being gang-raped by armed men while collecting firewood, the 28-year-old tried in vain to get help. Some clinics were closed, others told her to return later and she had no money to access a hospital.

Five months after the assault, she lay on a mat in a displacement camp in South Sudan's capital, rubbing her swollen belly. “I felt like I wasn't heard ... and now I'm pregnant,” she said.

Sexual assault is a constant risk for many women in South Sudan. Now one aid group is trying to bridge the gap with technology, to find and help survivors more quickly. But it's not easy in a country with low connectivity, high illiteracy and wariness about how information is used.

Five months ago, an Israel-based organisation in South Sudan piloted a chatbot it created on WhatsApp. It prompts questions for its staff to ask survivors of sexual assault to anonymously share their experiences. The information is put into the phone while speaking to the person and the bot immediately notifies a social worker there's a case, providing help to the person within hours.

IsraAID said the technology improves communication. Papers can get misplaced and information can go missing, said Rodah Nyaduel, a psychologist with the group. When colleagues document an incident, she's notified by phone and told what type of case it is.

Tech experts said technology can reduce human error and manual file keeping, but organisations need to ensure data privacy.

“How do they intend to utilize that information, does it get circulated to law enforcement, does that information cross borders. Groups need to do certain things to guarantee how to safeguard that information and demonstrate that,” said Gerardo Rodriguez Phillip, an AI and technology innovation consultant in Britain.