October 19, 2021: OTTAWA, ON – Today, Aman Lara is announcing a collaboration with IBM Canada to build a technology platform that helps Aman Lara and other NGOs in their efforts to evacuate Afghans from Afghanistan. Already almost 12,000 individuals have been entered into the platform to begin their journey to Canada.
Available in English, Pashto and Dari, the platform is built on IBM Cloud and offers a safe and secure portal for vulnerable Afghans seeking assistance out of the country. Aman Lara is working with Afghans who assisted Canadian Forces, families of Afghan-Canadian interpreters and other populations facing persecution under Taliban rule.
“The platform that IBM has developed for Aman Lara is a game changer in our efforts to assist those vulnerable Afghans who are in desperate need of our help,” said Amanda Moddejonge, Aman Lara’s lead data analyst. “The platform ensures that the information we are collecting is accurate and those in need can safely upload all their information in a secure manner.”
Developed by IBM with input from Aman Lara and partnered NGOs Afghan Canadian Interpreters and Building Markets, the new platform is unique to the ongoing situation in Afghanistan. It allows Aman Lara to track applicants and their travel documents in real time so the organization can advocate on their behalf and enable their evacuation.
“We’re proud to support this effort led by Aman Lara. The project started with a group of committed IBMers seeing a need and realizing that IBM consulting and technology could make a huge difference to the lives of Afghans,” said Dave McCann, Managing Partner, IBM Consulting Canada. “The team knew the urgency and in two weeks had the first phase of the platform ready to go – truly an example of how technology can impact lives for the better.”
The platform gives Aman Lara an understanding of the applicant community and how to best meet their needs. The solution provides a user-friendly interface for applicants to submit their information, and most importantly, processes and stores that information in a secure environment only accessible by relevant parties that need to process the applications. The solution also includes analytics that will help Aman Lara identify where the logjams are in the process, to make sure no one who is in the process to exit the country is left behind. The data is protected and only for use by those with a valid need, such as applicants and the agencies offering support.
This is an important relationship for Aman Lara, and the IBM platform is already playing a significant role in safely evacuating those under threat of reprisals from the new Taliban government and is the first step to bring vulnerable Afghans to Canada.
About Aman Lara (Sheltered Path):
Aman Lara is a Canadian not-for-profit organization, dedicated to the safe evacuation of vulnerable Afghans fleeing Taliban persecution in their own country. The organization was established in August of 2021 for this specific purpose and provides safety in Afghanistan, the facilitation of travel documentation and transport out of the country. Aman Lara was founded by a group of Canadian Veterans with close ties to Afghanistan.
For more information about IBM Canada, visit: www.ibm.com/ca-en
