MiTA

The Migration Translation Application (MiTA) is a smartphone application, developed by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) – The UN Migration Agency, that allows migration management officials to access a basic interpretation service with pre-determined and pre-recorded questions during first contact with migrants. The languages included in the MiTA are: English, Serbian, Bosnian, Montenegrin, North Macedonian, Albanian, Khmer, Lao, Somali, Burmese, Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Thai, Georgian, Armenian. The aim of the MiTA is to provide a basic mode of communication between the migration management official (ex. border official) and the migrant during their first contact. The questions included in application are intended to facilitate the communication between the official and the migrant during initial contact, and focus on the migrant’s identity, country of origin, travel route, immediate protection needs, and potential exposure to COVID-19. MiTA should not be used during official migration procedures which could have legal and procedural consequences for the migrant in later stages (ex. official statements, asylum interviews, BIAs, vulnerability assessments).

MiTA is a native application that operates offline. The application does not retain, store or collect the data that is entered within it. MiTA was developed by IOM – The UN Migration Agency as a tailor-made solution to address the needs of border management authorities in the Western Balkans funded by the European Union, and further adapted to the Mekong Region with the financial support from the governments of Canada and Australia. Georgian and Armenian languages were added to the app with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway.