Since its incubation at Station F in 2018 as part of the Share IT acceleration programme, WWoW has worked extensively on the conceptualisation of the BackUp digital tool. Its long-term vision, multiple functionalities and adaptability to a variety of issues make BackUp an agile and flexible tool. All these years have been the fruit of numerous collaborations and BackUp is the application of a purely participative and scientific approach. All over the world, many people, victims, legal professionals, academics, civil society, journalists, have participated in the development of the tool as it exists today,

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This journey is also the encounter of a non-governmental organization with the innovation and tech sector. Developed by the company Intech Luxembourg, BackUp represents the synergy between two worlds: that of international justice, crisis zones and international crimes, and the world of digital technology, developers, and innovation.

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In 2020, the Innovation Unit of the Agence Française de Développement decided to support the project financially and operationally alongside the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grande-Duchesse. For a year, WWoW conducted the proof of concept phases of BackUp's prototype version in Guinea-Conakry and Rwanda (via the Burundian refugee community) and in consultation with international partners.

The tool has demonstrated its potential for dissemination and replication.

 

It has many ramifications that enable it to be adapted to a wide range of issues beyond conflict-related sexual violence, i.e. migration, domestic violence, police violence and so on.

Thus, between 2021 and 2022, our teams concentrated on the technical adaptation of the tool. A major overhaul of the tool has been carried out thanks to the financial support of Luxembourg's Business Partnership Facility and private donors who have supported BackUp since its inception, David and Mehra Rimer.

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The health context created by the Covid19 pandemic enabled WWoW to demonstrate its ability to adapt and the full potential of digital tools in general. Against a backdrop of restricted freedom of movement, increasing violence and isolation, BackUp took on its full meaning. To do this, our team decided to devote this long period of time to a real reflection on the functionalities of the tool and its objectives, its ergonomics, the user experience and its capacity for international dissemination during a pandemic.

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The years 2023-2025 require that BackUp be funded according to its needs, namely around 2.5 million euros over these three years to cover urgent requirements across more than 25 geographical areas. Currently, these financial resources are not met, preventing us from deploying BackUp as rapidly as desired.

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BackUp is now deployed on Clever Cloud to ensure the security of all collected data.