Partnering During Crisis: The Shared Value of Partnerships between Mobile Network Operators and Humanitarian Organisations

The ubiquity and scale of mobile networks has made mobile an attractive delivery channel for many types of humanitarian assistance, and recent evidence shows that humanitarian stakeholders and the private sector are recognising the potential to offer essential products and services in an emerging digital humanitarian ecosystem. However, there is little available evidence of the value of these partnerships for MNOs and what motivates them to engage in humanitarian action.

This research aims to provide evidence to help MNOs make informed decisions about engaging in partnerships with humanitarian organisations, and to help humanitarian actors better understand their MNO partners and build successful long-term partnerships. This report examines the motivations and benefits for MNOs to work in partnership with the humanitarian sector. In recent years, there has been much discussion about the value of such partnerships, primarily from the perspective of humanitarian organisations. This report aims to complement these discussions with the perspectives of MNOs.