Mobile Data for Humanitarian Action: Pathways to Sustained and Responsible Use

With 96% of the world covered by mobile networks and 5.8 billion unique subscribers generating data every day, mobile network data holds significant potential to shape how humanitarian crises are understood and responded to.

This GSMA report examines the current and potential role of mobile data in an increasingly data-driven humanitarian sector. It shifts the discussion beyond whether these datasets can be used in crisis contexts to a more practical question: under what conditions do mobile data collaborations generate meaningful insights for humanitarian action, and how can these partnerships be strengthened and sustained over time?

The analysis draws on evidence from over 100 publications, 70 humanitarian use cases and 25 consultations. It includes perspectives from mobile network operators, humanitarian organisations, researchers and intermediary institutions. Case studies from Chile, Ghana and the Philippines show how partnerships have developed across diverse regulatory environments and operational settings.

Download the report for full insights here.