The journey of those displaced, towards safety as well as social protection, takes various forms in the country. While institutional policies frame disaster management as an essential part of Philippine society (through its whole-of-society approach), this framing overlooks the welfare and recognition of displaced persons. 

Our assessment looks at the interlinkages of digital public infrastructure (DPI) with disaster management in the country: through the PhilSys (digital ID), the digital payment providers in the country, and the disaster data sharing ecosystem and its governance in the disaster management cycle. The presence of DPI has, in many ways, enhanced connectivity for Filipino migrants across the world to aid communities back home unlock welfare through prompt means. However, inclusion can prove challenging for those unable to access technology to further avail social services.

This study analyses this ecosystem by highlighting alternative, bottom-up approaches to disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) efforts that emerge from local capacities and aspirations, and that bridge digital divides through community solidarity. 

It offers stakeholder-specific recommendations for participation in DRRM and social protection, involving actors to re-examine migration-centric policy in disaster contexts, leveraging community-recognised DPI to deliver public good, and infusing community data and insights into institutional decision-making.