The Digital Playbook

At UNICEF, creating digital impact means harnessing the potential of digital technologies and keeping child rights at the centre of our programming, to transform service and product design and delivery in collaboration with the children we serve.

The use of digital solutions for programme delivery by UNICEF and its partners comes with endless opportunities for digital impact, as recognized in the Global Digital Compact. To date, over 1,700 digital initiatives have been led by UNICEF and partners across the globe. Digital initiatives led by UNICEF Country Offices and partners can range from quite simple, such as a RapidPro digital survey in Pakistan to assess school safety and disaster resilience, to large and complex rollouts of national digital systems for children and their caregivers, such as an application to book doctor appointments, check results and learn about care in Mongolia.  

While opportunities for using digital in programmes to improve results for children are clear, this also can come with substantive risks. Research on digital solutions for social protection, for example, has shown that they can lead to exclusion and discrimination if not designed with child rights at their core.¹  As governments are deploying digital systems at national scale, UNICEF must ensure they meet the needs and advance the rights of the most vulnerable children and families online and offline.  In response to this need, UNICEF developed the Digital Playbook (the Playbook) to guide and support all UNICEF staff working with partners on digital initiatives in programmes. 

What is the Playbook? 

The Playbook serves as the internal UNICEF reference and standard to guide Country Office staff in planning, implementing and scaling digital initiatives in support of our programme areas, such as health, education and child protection. The Playbook guides UNICEF teams and partners through a four-stage methodology. For each stage, the Playbook provides activities and templates that support teams to implement digital initiatives in the Country Office. These activities operationalize industry best practices, including the Principles for Digital Development. They also account for the unique considerations of delivering digital initiatives in support of children's rights.  

Why is the Playbook important?

The Playbook is one of many resources that speak to UNICEF’s commitment to harnessing the power of technology to drive positive change for children and young people worldwide. Several of the ways that the Playbook contributes to high-quality digital initiatives at UNICEF include:

• Standardization: It standardizes the approach to digital initiatives, ensuring consistency, quality and responsible approaches towards cyber-security and data protection.
• Best Practices: It incorporates best practices in digital development, ensuring that UNICEF digital initiatives avoid common pitfalls and are designed and built in line with the Principles for Digital Development.
• Support and Guidance: It offers detailed guidance and support to UNICEF staff, helping them navigate complex digital projects effectively with partners and without re-inventing the wheel.
• Innovation and Efficiency: By providing a structured framework, the Playbook accelerates the adoption of innovative digital solutions, enhancing the efficiency and impact of UNICEF’s programmes.
• Collaborative Teamwork: It fosters collaboration across internal teams as well as co-creation with users and partners, enabling the sharing of knowledge and best practices to deliver fit-for-purpose digital solutions.

How will the Playbook continue to evolve?

The Playbook has been developed over the course of several years, with inputs from technical experts and strategic touchpoints to gather user feedback and enhance accessibility. The Playbook is regularly updated based on feedback and new developments, ensuring it remains relevant and effective in addressing emerging challenges. In 2025, the Playbook will also be expanded to include guidance and resources on how digital solutions can improve programme outcomes in health, education, and social protection.  

1. Amnesty International: Social protection in the digital age: A summary of the human rights risks of digital technologies in social protection systems, March 2024