Digital Accountability: The Untapped Potential of Participation when Using Technology in Humanitarian Action

Abstract

Over the past decades, digital technologies have seen a massive increase in use and have profoundly shaped the humanitarian sector. Their exponential growth has greatly increased the amount of data to be managed and accelerated the speed with which information travels (ALNAP 2022; OCHA 2021). This growth triggered discussions around the efficiency of necessary humanitarian services to respond to rising needs and sector-wide funding cuts. The request for more evidence-based programming, improved coordination, and increased accountability pushed many humanitarian organisations to ‘go digital’. […]