The Politics of Food and Digital Technologies in Changing Global and Local Crises
In this introductory blog, Yasmin Houamed argues that digitalisation is not a neutral innovation but a political process, fraught with risks and vulnerabilities.
Team goes to IHSA conference in Istanbul
The team organised a panel on ‘The politics of food and technology in changing global and local crises’ at the conference of the International Humanitarian Studies Association in Istanbul (15-17 October).
Presentation at IDS conference on Social and Humanitarian Assistance in Crisis
Tamer and Susanne presented a paper at the IDS conference (from 15-17 September 2025) on ‘The Politics of Digitalising Food Assistance in Sudan’s Crisis, and its Effect on the Food Security of Marginalised Populations’.
Team analysis workshop in Cairo from 2-7 July 2025
The international team met in Cairo (with Indian colleagues joining online) to discuss the preliminary analysis of our three country cases, start a comparative analysis, and plan our publications and dissemination strategy.
Digital Colonialism: How Tech Giants Control Food Aid
This article argues that the digitalisation of food assistance mimics aspects of colonialism, especially in terms of the asymmetries involved in the extraction of data (as a valuable resource) from vulnerable populations and the dominating role of US-based multinationals.
Research presentation in Cairo
On Wednesday the 24th of April, 2024, the team presented preliminary findings of the research at the CEDEJ Khartoum office in Cairo.
The evolution of digital risk in food assistance
The past two decades have seen an acceleration in the digitalisation of food assistance and social welfare.
Digital feast and famine: Digital technologies and humanitarian law in food security, starvation and famine risk
This working paper presents the findings of a brief exploratory study into the role of digital technologies in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and its implications for starvation and famine risk.
Digital bodies and digitalised welfare: North-South linkages in the politics of food assistance and social welfare
This paper examines North–South linkages in the politics of contemporary food assistance and social welfare, and in particular the normalisation of poverty and humanitarian crisis caused by increased digitalisation, privatisation and individualisation of aid or welfare.