Welcome to Voices of Resilience Season 3, brought to you by Na'amal, a non-profit and social enterprise dedicated to empowering forcibly displaced individuals through dignified remote work. In this episode, we delve into the exciting and sometimes challenging landscape of AI and Africa's digital future.

Co-hosted by Clay Lowe and Lorraine Charles, this conversation features Nick Murphy, CEO and Co-Founder of Kutana Pay, a fintech company reimagining payments across Africa and other emerging markets. Nick shares how his decade of experience helping UK and EU companies expand into Africa revealed a massive problem, slow, expensive, and inaccessible payments, and why removing that friction is essential for unlocking economic opportunity.

About Our Guest:
Nick Murphy leads strategy, growth, and mission at Kutana Pay, which is working to build a world where financial borders no longer hold people or businesses back. Kutana Pay’s platform enables companies in the Global North to send payments into emerging markets, while giving African SMEs and individuals access to global currencies in a secure, cost-effective, and compliant way.

About Kutana Pay:
With a focus on robust compliance, smart treasury systems, and financial inclusion, Kutana Pay addresses the two-way challenge of moving money into and out of African markets. Their mission is rooted in creating payment infrastructure that supports trade, digital work, and the participation of marginalized communities in the global economy.

Episode Highlights

The Payments Barrier and Why It Matters

• How slow, expensive cross-border systems, built for the West, exclude much of Africa from global markets
• Why access to USD and other major currencies is critical for importing goods, paying workers, and enabling digital work
• The two waves of African fintech: sending money in (diaspora remittances) vs. sending money out (trade and services)

The Role of Compliance and Documentation

• How KYC (Know Your Customer) rules can exclude refugees and people without formal IDs
• Balancing compliance with access, Kutana Pay’s approach to saying “yes” first and solving documentation hurdles creatively
• The human impact of being shut out from financial systems, particularly for displaced individuals earning digitally

Kutana Pay’s Model and Innovations

• What onboarding, verification, and secure transfers look like in practice
• Building trust through infrastructure and partnerships with NGOs, employers, and payment processors
• Stories that show the tangible impact of inclusive payment systems

Systemic Solutions for Financial Inclusion

• Policy and regulatory changes that could open up access for millions
• The role of private sector innovation vs. government-led reform
• What an inclusive, human-centered payments ecosystem could look like, and how to avoid replicating old patterns of exclusion

Discussion Topics:

• Why cross-border payments are critical for enabling digital work in Africa
• Financial barriers faced by refugees and marginalized people
• Trust, infrastructure, and systemic reform in Africa’s financial landscape
• Designing inclusive systems that work for everyone, everywhere

Connect with Us:

• Na'amal Website: namal.org
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/naamal/posts/?feedView=all
• Instagram: _naamal_

Welcome to Voices of Resilience Season 3, brought to you by Na'amal, a non-profit and social enterprise dedicated to empowering forcibly displaced individuals through dignified remote work. In this episode, we delve into the exciting and sometimes challenging landscape of AI and Africa's digital future.

In this powerful episode, we are joined by Sherrifa, a resilient learner originally from Sudan, now based in Ethiopia. Her story is one of determination, heartbreak, and healing, a journey shaped by years of systemic exclusion from education and reignited by a single opportunity to learn again.

Hosted by Clay Lowe, this conversation highlights the emotional and practical realities of navigating displacement, and how trust-based learning and community support can help restore confidence, purpose, and dreams once thought lost.

About Our Guest:

Sherrifa arrived in Addis Ababa six and a half years ago with a dream to continue her education. But she was repeatedly denied access due to bureaucratic barriers and expired academic documents. Despite the setbacks, she found ways to survive, tutoring, taking informal jobs, and confronting depression and self-doubt.

Everything shifted when she joined Na’amal. The program reconnected her to learning, introduced her to digital skills and remote work, and most importantly, helped her reclaim her sense of worth and possibility.

Episode Highlights

Fighting for Education in Exile

• The heartbreak of being accepted into her dream program, only to be turned away again
• Navigating a complex system that often excludes displaced learners
• What survival looked like while waiting for another chance

Healing and Rebuilding Through Learning

• The mental and emotional toll of prolonged uncertainty and rejection
• Discovering Na’amal and reconnecting with digital learning
• How personalized support and community helped rebuild her confidence

Skills, Growth, and a New Beginning

• The digital and professional skills that opened new doors
• How her mindset has transformed since completing the program
• What Sherrifa is dreaming of now

Advice for Others

• Words of encouragement for displaced youth who feel stuck or hopeless
• Her vision for a world where access to education and opportunity isn’t limited by borders or paperwork

Discussion Topics

• Education in exile: systemic barriers and hidden costs
• The role of mentorship and community in restoring hope
• Mental health and meaning: how learning can support healing
• Digital inclusion: making upskilling accessible to displaced learners
• Youth resilience: why agency and opportunity must go hand-in-hand

Connect with Us:

• Na'amal Website: namal.org
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/naamal/posts/?feedView=all
• Instagram: _naamal_

Welcome to Voices of Resilience Season 3, brought to you by Na’amal, a non-profit and social enterprise dedicated to empowering forcibly displaced individuals through dignified remote work. In this episode, we take a closer look at the world of digital remote jobs, through the eyes of refugees living and working in Kenya.

Co-hosted by Clay Lowe and Gerawork Teferra (Gera), this conversation features Daniel, a digital entrepreneur and Na’amal alumnus who grew up in Kakuma Refugee Camp. Together, they unpack the complexities of accessing and sustaining remote digital work while navigating life as a refugee in Kenya.

About Our Guest:

Daniel is a South Sudanese refugee, digital entrepreneur, and graduate of the Na’amal program. Raised in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Daniel carved out a path in the online freelancing world, becoming not only self-reliant but a role model and resource for others in his community.

About Our Co-Host:

Gerawork Teferra (Gera) is an Ethiopian refugee who has lived in Kakuma since 2011. He is currently a Resident Research Fellow at Columbia Global Nairobi, where his work focuses on refugee-host dynamics, mobility, and belonging. As co-host, Gera brings firsthand understanding and thoughtful inquiry to this conversation.

Episode Highlights:

Finding Opportunity Amidst Displacement

• Gera and Daniel share their personal journeys from Kakuma to digital careers
• Reflections on the absence of digital training in refugee camps, and how they filled the gap
• Moments of breakthrough, self-teaching, and growing digital confidence

What Digital Work Looks Like for Refugees

• Daniel walks us through a day in his life as a remote worker in a refugee setting
• Benefits and trade-offs: digital work vs. traditional jobs in and around the camp
• What dignity in work means when you're working across borders, but living with limited infrastructure

Barriers, Protections, and Power

• Freelancing challenges: client relations, job security, and fair payment
• Why digital work needs to be shaped with refugee perspectives at the center
• How Daniel protects himself as a digital entrepreneur—and advice for others doing the same

Building a Digital Future That Includes Everyone

• The role of gender, peer networks, and community support in the remote work space
• What the private sector and tech platforms can do to close the digital divide
• Big ideas for creating inclusive infrastructure, especially in under-resourced camps like Kakuma

Discussion Topics:

• Bridging the digital skills gap in displacement contexts
• Redefining professionalism from a refugee lens
• Labor rights and ethical concerns in the gig economy
• Representation and refugee-led storytelling
• Community trust, family perceptions, and social shifts
• Structural changes needed to support digital inclusion

Connect with Us:

• Na'amal Website: namal.org
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/naamal/posts/?feedView=all
• Instagram: _naamal_