Digital technologies in the global humanitarian sector: A case study of Ukraine

A critical approach regarding the potential for side effects associated with the use of digital technologies in the humanitarian sector as well as identifying potential risk factors arising from their “experimental” or “hasty” and unstructured use of the technologies in crises, finds real justification and is recommended by the humanitarian community, and notably the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Based on a literature review, reports containing data on humanitarian sector, as well as interviews with humanitarian practitioners, the phenomena occurring at the interface between humanitarian space and new technologies and their associated risks were analysed. The paper identifies critical, unresolved gaps in the legal, management and ethical frameworks of digital humanitarianism, among others accountability issues that have traditionally regulated the professional conduct of operations in this sector. It also presents the phenomena emerging in the context of response to the crisis situation in Ukraine. The Ukrainian case study, by bringing new digital experiences to the sector, will probably contribute to enriching the “learning” process of humanitarian agencies for similar emergencies in the future.