Revolutionizing Child Protection Across the Globe
Behind the Scenes of Primero, a Multi-Agency Initiative Empowering Frontline Workers and Transforming Lives
In today's rapidly evolving humanitarian landscape, technology is indispensable, and Primero is at the forefront of this digital transformation. This cutting-edge platform revolutionizes how professionals monitor incidents and manage child protection cases.
Primero is the result of a decade of collaboration among leading humanitarian organizations, including the International Rescue Committee, Save the Children, UNICEF, UNHCR, Plan International, and others. Now deployed in over 60 countries and supporting more than 75 programs, Primero is an essential tool for over 10,000 users—frontline workers, government officials, and international NGOs—who depend on it to deliver crucial services to vulnerable children worldwide.
Robert MacTavish, Technical Lead, Primero, explains the platform’s unique features, its wide-reaching impact, and the challenges involved in scaling this global initiative.
Q: What makes the Primero business model unique and innovative?
A: Primero is UNICEF’s first-ever pay-as-you-go Software as a Service (SaaS) model tailored specifically for our programmes. This isn’t just about technological innovation—it’s a shift in how UNICEF operates. Our business model emphasizes sustainability, ethical practices, and cost recovery, and we're on track to cover 100 per cent of our operating costs through subscriptions by 2025. This means that Primero is literally paying for itself! Our success is no accident – it’s the result of a decade-long collaboration across multiple UNICEF departments. I’m consistently impressed by how these teams have worked tirelessly to develop and scale a digital solution in a sector that has historically been under-resourced and often overlooked.
Q: What is the most significant impact Primero has on children and their communities worldwide?
A: Primero’s true impact is seen in the work of frontline workers. We provide them with digital tools that are easy to use, tailored to their needs, and available in their local languages—all at scale. One could say that Primero acts as the connective tissue between diverse groups, from governments to NGOs, all working together to ensure vulnerable children receive the services they need. It's remarkable to see how this tool unites so many stakeholders in the best interest of children.
Q: What challenges has Primero faced, and how has the team overcome them?
A: The most significant challenge has been ensuring sustainability and refining the business model. It’s not typical for UNICEF to function as a software services provider, yet this is precisely the role we must embrace to ensure Primero's success. Governments and civil society organizations rely on us, pushing us to innovate in critical areas such as legal agreements, financial processes, payment systems, and data security protocols. Navigating these complexities required us to step outside our traditional frameworks and adopt a fresh perspective. As a result, we’ve developed a robust, sustainable platform that effectively serves a diverse array of stakeholders worldwide. This collaboration has demonstrated the incredible potential that emerges when we unite our efforts.
Q: What are the plans for scaling Primero globally, and how will the team adapt the business model to different markets and their unique challenges?
A: Primero is built on a highly scalable SaaS infrastructure, leveraging our Microsoft Azure subscription to support global expansion. But leading the digital transformation of an entire sector isn't just about technology—it’s about people. Different markets have different needs, so we've developed Tiers of Service to cater to various contexts. This allows us to offer tailored support packages that adapt to the unique challenges of each market, ensuring Primero remains effective and relevant wherever it's deployed. Additionally, Primero’s certification as a Digital Public Good underscores its significance as a model of ethical and impactful technology.
Q: For you, what does innovation for children mean?
A: Innovation for children means equipping the social services workforce with digital tools that enable them to deliver services efficiently at scale while ensuring the safety and security of children’s data. It's about harnessing technology to enhance human capacity and ultimately making a tangible difference in the lives of vulnerable children around the world.
Primero is an interagency digital public good that extended the life of multiple legacy systems. Primero was designed to integrate with RapidFTR, a groundbreaking open source solution developed between 2012 and 2014 mainly for Rapid Family Tracing and Reunification efforts among refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo in Uganda. RapidFTR was pivotal in demonstrating the effectiveness of the Agile software development methodology, which was critical to Primero’s success. Primero was also an early adopter of the UNICEF Innovation Principles, launched in 2009, which emphasized user-driven development and sustainability.
Today, with implementations in more than 60 countries, Primero serves as a blueprint for how cross-sector collaborative innovation in digital service provision can drive meaningful change for children globally.
