Advocacy Brief: Participatory Data Processes to Benefit Displaced People. Key Findings and Recommendations from the Evaluation of the profiling in the Philippines (JIPS, 2023)

This advocacy brief provides insights into how a collaborative data process has contributed to more effective and sustainable outcomes for communities affected by internal displacement. It draws on the independent evaluation of the profiling of the internal displacement situation in the island provinces of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The brief also sheds light on the tangible results from JIPS’ work and informs its continuous efforts to improve its approach. It offers key pointers to how the impact of such processes can be further amplified, highlighting the unique opportunity that the multi-stakeholder exercise holds for the newly created BARMM government to address the challenge of internal displacement in alignment with their pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This brief can furthermore inform and inspire stepped-up practice in line with the United Nation’s Secretary-General’s (UNSG) call for an all-out effort. Specifically, the UNSG highlights the need for an integrated approach across disciplines and collective action for the whole of society because “internal displacement is a human rights issue at the intersection of many of the crises that plague humanity globally”. Multi-stakeholder, participatory data processes – such as profiling – play a vital role in brokering the critical partnerships and generating the needed common evidence-base that together enable concerted action and agency in data.

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Snapshot of Key Findings

• One of the most significant findings was the use of data to inform policymaking at the national and subnational levels, including the passing of the Patikul Protection of IDPs Ordinance.
• The implementation of the birth registration program is widely recognized as one of the most critical actions taken based on the profiling recommendations.
• Profiling efforts have revealed a considerably larger population of IDPs than previously estimated. Additionally, this process has aided in identifying the existence of home-based IDPs who were not receiving sufficient care and support.
• The collaborative process that underpinned the profiling exercise has further strengthened the existing collaborative efforts among organisations.
• During the evaluation, IDPs expressed newfound confidence in effectively communicating their protection needs to those responsible.
• A consensus emerged among the affected communities, highlighting that the most notable change observed since the profiling exercise is the timely response during disasters.

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