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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsRefugees in Kakuma, Kenya, have done the digital work behind technology and outsourcing projects, from transcription and data annotation to software development. But workers and organizers interviewed by The Guardian describe fewer entry-level gigs, less predictable pay and opaque assessments. The report links the squeeze to several changes—not AI alone—including the departure of a major platform from Kenya, automation and shifting client demand.
What digital work do refugees in Kakuma do?
The work ranges from short, task-based assignments to specialized technical services. Reported tasks include data annotation, transcription, translation and web research; some refugees have also pursued software engineering and web development. These jobs connect workers in the camp to technology firms and outsourcing clients, but the opportunity is not the same for everyone: the Guardian’s account describes many people relying on low-paid tasks, while some highly skilled workers value more direct, client-facing work.
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The International Trade Centre (ITC) describes remote digital services as a possible livelihood route for refugees, while cautioning that remote work is not a panacea. Its 2023 overview offers context about the promise and constraints of this work, not proof that a specific job is available today.
Why are the jobs and pay becoming less predictable?
Fewer basic gigs, more demand for specialized skills
Workers and organizations told the Guardian that basic digital gigs have become scarcer as client demand shifts toward specialized skills. Na’amal founder Lorraine Charles said: “As AI became mainstream, some jobs started to dry up,” The report also points to other contributing factors, including changing client demand and the exit of Remotasks from Kenya in 2024. It does not establish that AI alone caused the decline.
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The loss of a large platform mattered to workers who had depended on it. Bahana Hydrogene, who established the Solidarity Initiative for Refugees’ digital-skills programs, recalled that some workers had taken home 500–1,000 Kenyan shillings ($3–$6) a day before Remotasks closed. That is a historical range reported to the Guardian, not a current wage benchmark.
An attributed estimate of declining entry-level work
The Guardian reported that ITC spokesperson Susanna Pak estimated an approximately 50% decline since 2022 in transcription, data-entry, translation and web-research jobs. This is Pak’s estimate as reported in the article, not an independently confirmed figure here; it should not be read as a measured decline across all digital work or all workers in Kenya.
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When is payment a wage—and when is it a reward?
One key distinction is whether workers are owed a set payment for completed work or may receive money only if selected for a discretionary reward. In the Guardian’s account, the AOP Connect hymns-research project listed a $9,000 pool of possible rewards to be shared among an unknown number of contributors. That was not a guaranteed wage for each participant.
Workers described uncertainty about how their work was assessed and what clients intended to do with it. Hydrogene said: “They can’t get transparent answers from these companies.” Oxford Internet Institute professor Mark Graham explained the risk in reward-based arrangements: “The language of ‘rewards’ instead of wages shifts risk entirely on to workers, who invest their time and expertise without any guarantee of fair compensation,”
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AOP Connect’s response
AOP Connect told the Guardian that it communicates the reward structure and the nature of the copyright research upfront. It said payment depends on quality, relevance and timeliness, and that the platform is “not AI-enabled or used for AI-model training work”. That is the company’s stated position; the report also describes participants’ and payment notices’ concerns about how assessment works. These accounts distinguish disclosure of a reward system from workers’ ability to understand how judgments affect their individual compensation.
What changed after Remotasks left Kenya?
The departure removed one source of digital tasks, while the broader market offered less predictable access to basic work. The Guardian reported that Solidarity Initiative for Refugees (SIR) had trained more than 2,000 refugees, with more than half connected to remote technology work. Those figures are attributed to SIR as reported by the Guardian; they do not mean every trainee secured continuing work.
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The report also describes the economic strain in Kakuma: it says fewer than half of households have income and that households with income earn less than $50 a month. Those figures are reported by the Guardian, and its accessible account does not identify a primary statistical publication for them.
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Can refugees move from microwork into higher-skilled jobs?
Training paths described in the report include software engineering, digital marketing and e-commerce. Moving into those fields may offer different kinds of work, but it is not a guaranteed fix. Specialized roles can be harder to access for people whose schooling or work histories have been disrupted, and the Guardian’s reporting makes clear that many workers still depend on basic tasks.
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The report points to possible future work in data cleaning and reviewing AI outputs, but these are potential roles, not confirmed openings. The ITC’s broader view is that digital skills and access to markets can create opportunities, while remote work alone cannot resolve the barriers refugees face.
What would make digital work fairer?
The accounts in the Guardian report point to practical questions workers need answered before committing time to a project:
- Payment certainty: Is compensation owed for completed work, or is it a reward that may be shared among an unknown number of contributors?
- Assessment clarity: Can workers see how quality, relevance or timeliness are evaluated and how those judgments affect payment?
- Client and use transparency: Do workers know who commissioned the task and how their work will be used?
- Room to negotiate: Can workers raise concerns about rates or conditions without fearing that someone else will simply take the assignment for less?
These questions matter because the worker’s bargaining position can be weak when a platform mediates an anonymous client relationship and workers fear replacement. ITC executive director Pamela Coke-Hamilton said: “We are at a tipping point,” she said. “AI has taken people by surprise with its speed and impact, and we need to ask what labor organizing looks like now. We need guardrails to prevent mass exploitation.” Milagros Miceli, principal investigator at Data Workers’ Inquiry and research lead at the Distributed AI Research Institute, put workers’ contribution this way: “Without data workers, tech companies do not have a product,” she said. “So there should be space for bargaining power.”
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