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Reinventing Humanitarian Aid Procurement for the Age of AI

Giulio Coppi

Access Now (2026), 59 pp.

"Our research reveals that the organisational use of AI and algorithmic systems often happens through a process of unstructured integration rather than formal adoption. More precisely, cloud-based, algorithmic-enhanced functionalities and processes are making their way into humanitarian entitiesʼ t ... ech stack through updates and add-ons to preexisting products, slowly but inexorably seeping into most internal systems. A price-based procurement process designed around the static idea of digital asset purchase is inadequate to ensure adequate protection from hyperdynamic tech product development. This is especially evident looking at the growing power imbalances between private actors and nonprofits, and among nonprofits themselves. Digital technology is often heralded as key to democratise and equalise the playing field between humanitarian actors, by finally unlocking local actorsʼ access to resources traditionally reserved for international entities. But emerging trends seem to disprove such claims. The lack of adequate legal frameworks and safeguards, lagging investments in humanitarian funding for information and communication technology (ICT) resources and connectivity, and inadequate dedicated funding for digital programmes are thwarting these opportunities. More broadly, virtuous and responsible procurement practices are proving inadequate for protecting human rights alone, as tech companiesʼ commitments to human rights are replaced by defence-oriented pitches and the size of their human rights teams keeps shrinking. Preexisting digital divides are enhanced by several deep and subtle changes in traditional tech business models, resulting from the gradual cloudification of most common digital systems and the fast-paced, distributed nature of modern digital development. Even more worryingly, we are seeing new forms of digital divide well beyond the traditional gaps in digital capacity between local and small non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) or UN entities. Cloud-based companiesʼ takeover of generic coordination platforms creates a constantly broadening chasm between the few organisations that are digitally mature, those who are barely retrofitting their processes to fit the new reality, and the broad majority forced to access the promised land of digital humanitarianism through the predatory gates of algorithmic and cloud servicesʼ free tech licensing. Our findings highlight how organisation-led digital development, building on open-source systems (despite some “openwashing” practices) and trusted external providers, remains the best option for risk reduction when it comes to algorithmic systems. However, in the short to medium term, this might not be financially and technically feasible for the majority of humanitarian actors, especially considering the catastrophic funding environment. To fill this gap, we propose a toolkit in an appendix to this report. This is a foundational governance model for transforming digital procurement from a transactional into a strategic business function, integrated across key organisational departments. By doing so, protection-mandated aid groups could move from running purchase-centred processes, to adopting a dynamic, proactive, and rights-based approach to tech management. This report also contains a set of recommendations for states and donors, the humanitarian community, tech companies, local aid actors and communities, research centres, and cyber experts." (Executive summary, pages 2-3) more

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Technocolonialism: When Technology for Good is Harmful

Mirca Madianou

Cambridge: Polity Press (2025), vii, 248 pp.

"With over 300 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and with emergencies and climate disasters becoming ever more common, AI and big data are being championed as a force for good and as a solution to the complex challenges of the aid sector. This book argues, on the contrary, that digit ... more

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Walking the faultline of fear: How affect-inducing risk communication can help promote disaster preparedness

Caroline Rowe, Caroline Orchiston, Fabien Medvecky

Journal of Science Communication, volume 24, issue 6 (2025), 24 pp.

"This paper uses New Zealand’s AF8 [Alpine Fault Magnitude 8] program, designed to build resilience and preparedness for earthquakes, as a real-world example to explore how emotional appeals can affect preparedness intentions within the emergency management sector. Drawing on template analysis of ... more

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Humanitarian Crisis Coverage Report

Marius Dragomir

Tallinn; London: Media and Journalism Research Center (MJRC) (2025), 38 pp.

"The central research question — to what extent media representation aligns with crisis severity — underpins an analysis of 78,667 news articles spanning 10 of the world's most urgent humanitarian crises, from Sudan and Ethiopia to Ukraine and Gaza. Drawing from English-language media in eight c ... ountries, the study is based mostly on Western sources and three non-Western outlets to offer a cross-sectional view of editorial priorities in the Anglophone information ecosystem. Key findings demonstrate that global humanitarian coverage is highly uneven. Crises in Gaza and Ukraine dominate international media attention, averaging 58.5 and 19.4 articles per day, respectively. Conversely, some of the world’s most devastating, yet protracted crises—including those in Chad (0.06 articles/day) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (1.5 articles/day)—receive little sustained attention. This disproportionate focus does not correlate with humanitarian severity or affected populations. For example, the DRC, where over 21 million people need aid, garners a fraction of the visibility of Gaza, which affects 3.3 million people. These disparities are symptomatic of a broader hierarchy in global journalism. Crises with geopolitical resonance—such as those involving Western allies or adversaries—are amplified, while those centered in the Global South are often sidelined. The study identifies longstanding logics of newsworthiness at play, prioritizing conflict proximity, elite involvement, dramatic visuals, and ideological utility over humanitarian need. Event-driven spikes further distort coverage. Media interest surges during acute developments—such as the Taliban’s return in Afghanistan—but quickly subsides, perpetuating a feeling of “media fatigue.” This inconsistency undermines humanitarian advocacy that depends on sustained public and political engagement. The framing analysis of the Gaza and Ukraine crises conducted as part of this project reveals that the humanitarian lens is the most dominant across media coverage. Articles prioritize imagery of suffering civilians, refugee stories, and basic needs, registering higher average mentions (0.316 per article) than military (0.281) or geopolitical (0.267) frames. However, while framed empathetically, these narratives risk oversimplifying multidimensional conflicts and depoliticizing structural injustices." (Executive summary) more

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Care crisis report: Ten humanitarian crises that did not make the headlines in 2024
Deep Insights

London: Care International (2025), 26 pp.

"Humanitarian crises are challenges affecting millions of people. They are diverse and global – be they natural disasters, famine crises, conflicts or wars. However, the attention of the global public is usually focused on a few, particularly prominent crises. With this Crisis Report, which is bei ... more

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Repair work, resistance and the invisible data labour of Lebanon’s digital humanitarian infrastructures

Jenna Imad Harb

Big Data & Society, issue January–March (2025), 13 pp.

"This article draws upon a multi-sited ethnography of everyday labour in Lebanon’s digital cash assistance for Syrian refugees. The datafication of humanitarian infrastructures generates technological breakdown, gaps in data and incredibly strict and cumbersome rules. In response to impediments re ... more

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US Aid Frozen: A Real Humanitarian Crisis And Lives Will Be Lost

Thomas Byrnes

ICTworks (2025)

"The United States has long held the position of the world’s single largest donor to humanitarian aid, a fact clearly illustrated by data from the UN’s Financial Tracking Service (FTS). In 2024, the US contributed a staggering $13.80 billion to humanitarian efforts globally, representing 43.04% ... more

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„Das größte lösbare Problem der Welt“: Die mediale Vernachlässigung des Globalen Hungers

Ladislaus Ludescher

Heidelberg: Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg (2025), 293 pp.

"Hunger gehört zu den elementarsten menschlichen Erfahrungen. Etwa jeder zehnte Mensch auf der Welt hungert. Jeden Tag sterben etwa 24.000 Menschen an den Folgen von Hunger, etwa alle 13 Sekunden ein Kind unter 5 Jahren. Hunger ist aber keineswegs ein unabwendbares Schicksal. Das Welternährungspro ... more

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Outsourcing accountability: Extractive data practice and inequities of power in humanitarian third-party monitoring

Stephanie Diepeveen, John Bryant, Wasuge Mahad

Big Data & Society, issue January–March (2025), 14 pp.

"Since the early 2010s, humanitarian donors have increasingly contracted private firms to monitor and evaluate humanitarian activities, accompanied by a promise of improving accountability through their data and data analytics. This article contributes to scholarship on data practices in the humanit ... more

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Effects of Fundraising Alliances on Charitable Donations

Robert J. Fisher, Oliver Rutz

Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing (2025), 20 pp.

"Fundraising Alliances (FAs) are independent organizations that fundraise for two or more charities under a separate brand. High-profile examples of FAs include the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) in the United Kingdom and the Humanitarian Coalition (HCC) in Canada. FAs are designed to reduce pr ... more

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Support for Ukrainian Refugees Through Media: Summary of Project Achievements

Paris: UNESCO (2025), 10 pp.

"Through this project, UNESCO strengthened fact-based information exchange between refugees and host citizens as media audience. In doing so, it fostered social cohesion. The project assisted the media in their portrayal of the diversity of viewpoints, and governments in their response to the refuge ... more

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Conjuring a Blockchain Pilot: Ignorance and Innovation in Humanitarian Aid

Margie Cheesman

Geopolitics (2024), 28 pp.

"When aid professionals adopt high tech pilot projects, ignorance, blind faith, misplaced trust, and authentic expertise all come into play. Based on ethnographic research in Jordan, I examine how a refugee aid organisation produces and applies a blockchain pilot. Innovative pilots help internationa ... more

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Advancing disaster risk communications

I. S. Stewart

Earth-Science Reviews, volume 249, issue 104677 (2024), 14 pp.

"Effective communication of disaster threats to decision makers and at-risk communities is a growing challenge in a people-centred approach to disaster risk reduction. Traditional communication approaches tend to involve either top-down risk management practices or bottom-up community health and edu ... more