Session II: Responding to climate-related risks and humanitarian crises

Outline

In the context of climate-related crises – such as droughts, wildfires, floods, and mudslides – as well as other shocks, timely and targeted interventions are critical to protecting the most vulnerable populations. Digital solutions can significantly enhance both the speed and effectiveness of delivering social assistance.

When climate-monitoring capabilities are integrated into systems such as social registries, and when voucher or cash transfer mechanisms are adapted to better address humanitarian needs, these tools can help reduce both immediate and secondary risks for affected communities.

In this panel, the openIMIS initiative invites key stakeholders – including representatives from WFP, UNICEF, the World Bank, and independent experts – to share their experiences, and to discuss the diverse and evolving requirements of climate-related and humanitarian response efforts. The session will conclude with a collaborative exploration of opportunities to co-develop a solution tailored to meet the specific needs of this sector.

Facilitator: Frank Erkenbrecher, Advisor, Sector Initiative Social Protection, GIZ

• Introduction

• Input(s) & Panel Discussion  

  • Emrys Schoemaker, Senior Director, Policy and Advisory / Caribou

  • Joe (Youssouf) Zaarour, Digital Social Protection Advisor, WFP

  • Sarah Coll-Black, Senior Social Protection Specialist, Social Protection and Jobs / WB

  • Gabriele Erba, Beneficiary Data Lead, Cash Assistance Hub - Social Protection / UNICEF

• Q&A with audience and short poll

Summary

Session 2 comprised a panel discussion facilitated by Frank Erkenbrecher, Advisor, Sector Initiative Social Protection for GIZ. The discussion considered the diverse and evolving requirements of climate-related and humanitarian response efforts, and the ways in which digital solutions enhance their speed, targeting, accountability and thus, overall effectiveness.

Emrys Schoemaker, Senior Director, Policy and Advisory at Caribou, opened the discussion, suggesting that the current, changing political economy and declining funding can be seen as an opportunity to “do more with less”; to collaborate to avoid duplicative systems and bridge gaps between developmental and humanitarian assistance.

Gabriele Erba, Beneficiary Data Lead, Cash Assistance Hub - Social Protection at UNICEF, highlighted how providing humanitarian assistance can present an opportunity to strengthen systems, a process which digital public goods enable. In Sri Lanka, [EH1] UNICEF has used their digital tool Humanitarian Cash Operations and Programme Ecosystem (HOPE) to support the transition from an in-kind project to a cash transfer scheme for the nutrition needs of children and families, which in turn is informing the approach to digitalization for a preexisting, complementary pregnancy voucher programme.

Youssef (Joe) Zaarour, Digital Social Protection Advisor at the World Food Programme (WFP), argued that even as crises become more frequent and protracted, digital transformation can enable a shift from reacting to shocks to managing risk. One example is the WFPs ongoing work to strengthen early warning anticipatory action in the Disaster Risk Management sector in Rwanda, using AI solutions to connect surface data and earth observation data with vulnerability data, giving disaster risk agencies the ability to better prepare for and respond to crises.

Sarah Coll-Black, Senior Social Protection Specialist, Social Protection and Jobs at World Bank, echoed the importance of a shift towards strengthening systems that anticipate and are resistant to shocks, both in terms of swiftness and scalability of response, and insulation from the physical risks of climate impacts, such as investing in back-up electricity systems to protect the digital solutions needed at times of crisis. Another key lesson from World Bank’s work in fragile contexts is the importance of identifying and investing in high-value functions such as digital IDs and management information systems, and in parallel investing in the governance of these systems—an area where open-source solutions prove vital.

Panelists agreed that a collaborative approach was increasingly important, particularly in addressing the problems of data silos and duplicative systems. Mr. Erba advocated for an active community of practice for digitalization of social protection systems and humanitarian assistance to create a coordinated approach, sighting the 2024 AI in Social Protection conference as an effective example. Ms. Coll-Black acknowledged the time and effort required to enable this level of collaboration, starting with the need for a common vocabulary for meaningful discussion. Citing recent humanitarian responses in South Sudan as an example of agencies effectively sharing systems and linking services, Mr. Schoemaker advocated for the importance of inter-organization governance agreements, such as the WFP/UNHCR Data Sharing agreement, which facilitate such sharing at a global level.

Acknowledging that vital decisions in humanitarian responses are made by people, who may have greater or lesser capacity, understanding, and available time, one key suggestion was the creation of a sufficiently accessible marketplace of digital public goods. Such a marketplace would help to make a range of technical solutions available to more people, develop a shared understanding of the scope of each tool, showcase success stories, and share learnings.

In the following Q&A session, Mauro Clerici, Social Protection Officer at the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) agreed with the panel on the importance of interoperability and using Digital Public Goods in the Humanitarian sector. Mr. Clerici also reiterated the call for clear data sharing agreements, citing experience of the WFP/UNHCR agreement enabling rapid ‘sign-off’ within two weeks for work in Libya. This is in contrast to six months in a context where data-sharing agreements are not in place.

 View the recording:

·       Full session II panel discussion (60 min)