It looks like a cultish gathering of smartphone users, and in many ways it is: this image shows African migrants on the shore of Djibouti, holding their phones aloft to snatch cheap phone signal from nearby Somalia.
Djibouti is a common stopping point for migrants trying to leave Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea for new lives in Europe and the Middle East. To let friends and family known how they’re getting on, the most affordable option is to to use Somalia’s relatively inexpensive phone networks—but, as the picture shows, that’s not always easy. It’s a heartbreaking insight into the digital lives of those not content with their lot.
The image was captured by US photographer John Stanweyer, and bagged him the first singles prize in this year’s World Press Photo of the Year. [World Press Photo]
