Every year, hundreds if not thousands of Somali refugees and migrants die while trying to seek asylum and migrate in an irregular manner (Tahriib) to Europe and elsewhere.

To raise awareness on the dangers of these Tahriib journeys, UN refugee agency UNHCR has launched a campaign dubbed Telling the Real Story (TRS). The campaign is part of a UNHCR global initiative, which targets a diverse group of people, mainly the youth who may consider embarking on such a journey.

In partnership with UNHCR, Star Media Development Centre (SMDC) produced and aired Vox Pops and an hour-long Televised Talk Show in Somalia as part of the UN agency’s Telling the Real Story information campaign in a bid to respond to the rising number of Somali refugees and migrants perishing in the Central Mediterranean each year.

SMDC’s objective in undertaking the campaign was help the UNHCR inform Somali refugees and asylum seekers in countries of transit and first asylum of the full scope of the perils and difficulties of irregular movement and ultimately enable them to take an informed decision about their movements and plans for the future.

The campaign also aimed to expand the reach of messages and drive an intra-community dialogue on Tahriib through cooperation between UNHCR and SMDC to reach out to Somali communities in the Horn of Africa.