Data Insights Give New Direction to Social and Humanitarian Action
A new mapping tool being launched in the Philippines will raise resilience to disaster.
Monsoon season is an annual threat to people living in the Philippines, where typhoons and torrential rain bring landslides and flooding that can force tens of thousands from their homes. In 2020, for example, Typhoon Vamco hit the main island of Luzon, triggering the worst flooding in decades across eight regions. With climate change, the typhoons may become even more frequent and destructive.
In the past, international organizations and NGOs responding to such natural disasters had to rely on outdated census data and slow “needs assessment” surveys to target help to those affected. But now UN Global Pulse and its partners are about to launch a mapping tool that will speed up and refine the humanitarian response to those on the ground by analysing how populations move after a natural disaster.
“As we navigate through an era of unmatched challenges, we see this initiative as a shining example of digital public goods effectively implemented. It is an example of a cross-sector partnership, showcasing an evolution in data-guided development, humanitarian efforts and peace building,” said Kersten Jauer, Deputy Director, Strategic Planning and Monitoring, Executive Office of the Secretary-General.
“We are excited because early testing suggests that in 2023 we will be able to improve resilience (to disaster) for over five million people,” said Ankit Bisht, Digital and Analytics Leader at McKinsey & Company, one of our partners in a wider initiative to put stored data to use for public good.
This multilateral cooperation emerged from forum discussions that began around 2020 and was initially called the Global Data Access Initiative (GDAI). We have now renamed it Disha (Data Insights for Social and Humanitarian Action) to better reflect what we want to achieve with the data. In the ancient Sanskrit language, Diśā means “direction”.
Disha is a unique partnership between the UN and private firms and foundations, working day to day in different regions on the same goal. The partners are UN Global Pulse, McKinsey & Company, Google.org, the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and the Jain Family Institute. As well as the Philippines project, the partners are also working on developing AI to assess damage to infrastructure after disasters.
At a time when artificial intelligence is sometimes portrayed as a potential danger to humanity, Disha is setting an example of responsible data use and showing how AI can bring tangible benefits. “There is a clear argument that a lot of good can be done with AI in a controlled and managed way,” said Ankit.
In the case of the Philippines, Disha has developed a “social mapping” tool to help decision-makers allocate resources. While respecting privacy, we use mobile phone data to monitor population movement during disasters, as well employing a method called “nowcasting” to estimate poverty. This helps aid organizations predict where people might need relief and support.
Ethical considerations are always uppermost in our minds. The data is stripped of any information that could identify individuals and everything is done confidentially, within strict legal frameworks for privacy and data protection.
Disha’s mapping tool, called Social Economic Mapping (SEM), has been in the development stage but is about to go live. We have already done user tests with the Philippines Red Cross, Oxfam and the Catholic Relief Service and aim to launch it this July-August 2023, when the typhoon season starts again.
The population of the Philippines is 114 million. The monsoon brings rains from May to October. Annual rainfall varies from as much as 197 inches in the mountainous east to less than 39 inches in sheltered valleys.
“We usually get around 20–30 typhoons a year,” said Charlie Del Rosario, a data translator with McKinsey & Company, who comes from the Philippines. “They vary in terms of strength. Maybe three to five are major disasters, with deaths and casualties.
“It’s very scary when we hear the typhoon announcements because we know the possible magnitude and what they can do. We have seen it year on year. Houses are flattened and people lose loved ones. They do not know where their loved ones are.
“The worst thing is the typhoons are unpredictable — you never quite know which area will be hit. You worry about your loved ones, you feel helpless, especially if you are not actually in the zone. All you can do is reach out, try to get in touch, make a donation.”
But soon our mapping tool will bring an element of human control. It will enable humanitarian organizations to prioritise their aid. On the ground, it will help those in the path of disaster to find the nearest evacuation centres or get cash assistance.
In the Philippines, Disha works with Globe Telecom to obtain data from cell phones. As affected people call, message or top up their phones, we are able to locate them and understand where there is most displacement.
Our technique of “nowcasting” helps us to estimate poverty. Here we look at people’s behaviour — how much are they calling or topping up? — and correlate that with information about poverty levels in the regions. We are giving the users context on the regions so they can deploy help. Some regions might be more vulnerable than others and need more aid.”
The information on poverty allows aid agencies to prepare for possible disasters, which is in line with UN Global Pulse’s aim of anticipating crises rather than merely responding to them. The data on population movement is needed when disaster actually happens.
“There are thousands of villages in the Philippines,” said Ahmed El Saeed, Innovation Scaling Lead at UN Global Pulse. “If we can get village-level data without compromising privacy, this is enormously helpful. It means people can get immediate help instead of having to wait for days.”
The mapping tool will be Disha’s first innovation to be applied in the real world. Ahmed said: “We began building it last year. Now the momentum has kicked in. By the end of the year, we hope to be able to extend it to three or four more countries.”
Led by UN Global Pulse, Disha brings together a coalition of partners including Google.org, the Jain Family Institute, McKinsey & Company, the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) and the World Food Programme (WFP).
