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Expert opinion, insight and comment on today’s most pertinent issues relating to sustainable development and ending poverty

Latest blog posts

13 December 2023

Three reasons why refugee-led organisations need to be front and centre at this Global Refugee Forum

Excluding refugee-led organisations (RLOs) from the formal refugee response is a lose-lose. Organisations led by refugees play a critical role in the lives of displaced communities. But they have been underfunded and overlooked by the international community for years.

Written by

Caitlin Sturridge, Fran Girling-Morris, Maysa Ismael, Amy Croome

4 December 2023

How can AI be used to improve predictions of humanitarian need?

We used machine learning to project the possible impacts of different climate change scenarios on humanitarian need. What might the future hold?

Written by Alex Miller

Senior Data Scientist

13 November 2023

Overlooked and undervalued: tracking funding to refugee-led organisations

Refugee-led organisations play a key but overlooked role in humanitarian action. How can new insights on their funding drive inclusive changes to enhance transparency, funding and advocacy?

Written by Carina Chicet

Senior Analyst

15 December 2022

Tracking humanitarian funding to local actors: what we’ve learnt

In this blog, we explore the latest data and practices on tracking humanitarian funding to local actors, including the challenges around understanding whether 'localisation' of funding is happening and how to overcome them.

Written by

Fran Girling-Morris, Suzanna Nelson-Pollard, Carina Chicet

7 December 2022

Indirect cost recovery for 'local' NGOs: an urgent issue for humanitarian reform

In this blog, DI, Oxfam and UNICEF outline the context for new guidance on the provision of overheads to local and national humanitarian actors, and explain why the changing industry standard is so important.

Written by

Fran Girling-Morris (DI), Amy Croome (Oxfam), Luc Chauvin (UNICEF)

25 November 2022

Funding to address gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies must go further

In this blog, DI’s Carina Chicet highlights key areas for improvement in the prevention, mitigation and response to gender-based violence in crisis settings.

Written by Carina Chicet

Senior Analyst

13 September 2021

The cost of leaving Afghans behind

Aid to Afghanistan is stagnating despite the desperate need for funding. Donors must come together to ensure that this does not become the new normal for such crises.

Written by Sofia Martínez Fernández

Senior Policy & Engagement Advisor/Crisis & Humanitarian Co-Lead (Maternity leave)

4 March 2021

Localisation is here to stay: Lessons from Kenya

As part of a DI research team, Martha Getachew Bekele heard from over 30 humanitarian actors working in Kenya. Here she reveals what localisation means to them.

Written by Martha Getachew Bekele

Delivery, Quality & Impact Lead

28 April 2020

The power of transparency: Data is key to an effective crisis response

DI's Verity Outram and World Vision's Daniel Stevens share lessons, applicable to the coronavirus pandemic and more broadly, for how transparency and high-quality data can help humanitarian organisations, donors and advocates better respond to crises.

Written by Verity Outram

International Policy & Engagement Lead