INVESTIGATING SAFE DATA SHARING AND SYSTEMS INTEROPERABILITY IN HUMANITARIAN CASH ASSISTANCE

The simplest, most common way to share data across humanitarian organizations remains sending a spreadsheet in an email. This approach uses tools and technical knowledge that are low cost and nearly ubiquitous; it is the lowest-common denominator approach that almost every organization can use to collaborate with other organizations. On the other end of the spectrum, the largest and most well-resourced humanitarian organizations have built sophisticated software systems with global databases, robust APIs, biometrics capabilities, and even distributed ledger technology (i.e. blockchains). The question of interoperability in the sector is therefore in part a question of how to reconcile these wildly disparate systems, organizational capacities and governance structures, while maintaining or improving on security and data protection measures. The interest in improved interoperability is driven by a growing recognition that as humanitarian aid is increasingly digitalized and data driven, the need for improved coordination across organizations and technical systems has become core to the effective delivery of services. This is especially true with cash programming, which offers tremendous scale and leverage when using digital channels, but also requires even more coordination and sharing of data with a broader range of stakeholders, including private-sector financial institutions. This report offers a technical landscaping of the current state of data sharing and interoperability in the sector, and evaluates the potential of emerging technologies and operating models to address challenges in current approaches. The analysis is focused on cash programming, and specifically on two use cases: deduplication of beneficiaries, and referrals of individuals.