[Spotlight] Supporting Humanitarian Crises with Open Data
By Magd Sora, ODC Volunteer and edited by Mercedes de los Santos and Cat Cortes
In the third installment of ‘The State of Open Humanitarian Data 2022’, the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) along with Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX) concluded that “Progress is being made in closing data gaps across most humanitarian operations. This momentum is the result of global advocacy and investment paired with field-level data sharing and outreach.” Nevertheless, the latest numbers reported by the United Nations (UN) estimate that 274 million people will be in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in 2022, marking the third year in a row where the number of the world’s most vulnerable populations undergoes a significant increase (the number of people in need of humanitarian aid was around 132 million globally in 2019).
The rising number of people in need can be in part attributed to the collapse of the Afghan government, the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the deteriorating state of the environment. To meet the growing demands of the humanitarian sector, and to reduce the gap between people’s needs and aid organizations’ abilities to deliver assistance, better access to high quality data will prove indispensable as we move forward in the new digital age as a global community. In this month’s implementation working group session, we discuss the role of open data and data coordination amongst various actors involved in sudden and protracted humanitarian crises around the world, with a special focus on the situation in Ukraine.
Open Data Charter (ODC) was pleased to host the following distinguished panel:
- Jos Bernes, Data Responsibility Officer at the Center for Humanitarian Data:
Based in the Hague Humanity Hub since 2017, the OCHA Center for Humanitarian Data goal is to increase the use and impact of data in humanitarian response. The Center aims at improving all types of humanitarian data collected in a responsible manner, it aims at improving the capacities of aid workers when it comes to data literacy, and to utilize data to get ahead and forecast potential crises (predictive analytics). Jos introduceds HDX, the largest hub for humanitarian datasets, along with a number of examples where datasets and data visualization tools were employed in humanitarian crises, as well as ‘The Humanitarian Data and Trust initiative’ to better understand the role of donors and donor countries when it comes to the management of data and other related risks in safe and ethical ways. Lastly, Jos presented the Inter-Agency Standing Committee’s (IASC) operational guidelines on ‘Data Responsibility in Humanitarian Action 2021’, the first system wide framework for data responsibility across the sector.
- Peter Micek, General Counsel and UN Advocacy Manager, AccessNow:
AccessNow is a global digital rights organization which promotes data security and is focused on individuals and communities at risk around the world. Peter introduced RightsCon, the world’s leading summit on human rights in the digital age. As well as CiviCERT, a computer incident response center. Peter also highlighted a few of the many services AccessNow provides, for example: psychosocial and preventative support; convening tech companies; as well as providing digital security hotline for direct technical support to civil society, people in need, and humanitarian actors. Peter spoke about the different types of data generated by the organization and how that information was processed in different settings, for example, AccessNow documents invasions of digital securities, account compromises, cases of censorship, spyware, as well as internet shutdowns to fight against the deepening digital authoritarianism. AccessNow is currently working on a report that will highlight potential threats in the digital age.
- Nadiia Babynska (Virna), Independent Consultant, based in Ukraine.
Speaking from Kiev, Ukraine, a developed country with an advanced open-data infrastructure that is confronting one of the most pressing humanitarian crises in the world, Nadiia discussed how access to public information can be promoted and threatened during times of crisis. Nadiia highlighted how the war not only limits access to already existing databases, but also imposes difficulties on generating new high quality information that is necessary for the optimisation of aid operations in a post-crisis environment. Nevertheless, Nadiia demonstrated how despite limitations, open data has been crucial in providing assistance and to help counter the Russian invasion, for example: open data has been used to fight corruption and lead for greater accountability; register Russian affiliates to increase the effectiveness of sanctions; document war crimes and damage to infrastructure and the ecology; and generate data related to casualties, internally displaced peoples (IDPs), and Ukranians fleeing the war. Nadiia highlighted the importance of open data for the future reconstruction of Ukraine’s economy, civil society, and infrastructure. Finally,, Nadiia raised important ethical and moral questions regarding policies and access to data. How can the aid and open data communities find the equilibrium between having access to sensitive but vital information during times of crisis, without jeopardizing a population that is already experiencing great levels of insecurities?
If you would like to be a part of our Implementation Working Group, please don’t hesitate to get in touch: info@opendatacharter.org.
