UNHCR PRIMES: Refugee Database Management and Use Cases

Throughout the topic synopsis we’ve reviewed how important data collection and transparency is to ensuring the safety of vulnerable communities. In this blog post we’ll talk about the other end of the pipeline and show that that data collection and management is put to use. 


The UNHCR’s (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) most recent development in digital registration and identity management is UNHCR PRIME, the Population Registration and Identity Management Ecosystem. UNHCR PRIME is a collection of all the UNHCR’s digital registration information, bringing together tools for case and identity management, and is fully aligned with the Policy on the Protection of Personal Data of Persons of Concern to UNHCR.


PRIMES consists of several repositories for personal data (biographic and biometric) and supporting information along with multiple tools which safely make use of the data to deliver targeted protection, assistance, and solutions to refugees and other displaced populations. 


PRIMES is an enabler for:

  • Identity management (including registration and biometric enrolment) and documentation

  • Case management (including the principal Protection aspects: Refugee Status Determination, Resettlement, Statelessness, Repatriation, Legal and Physical Protection, Child Protection, SGBV and others)

  • Assistance (cash and in-kind)

  • Data management, including reporting and analysis for evidence-informed action for quality protection outcomes



As of 2018, 58 countries and more than 7.1 million people were biometrically enrolled through 60 operations. The use of biometrics was noted to be helpful in distributing resources quickly and accurately in 8 countries as well. Alongside every country’s use of  PRIMES is a PRIMES Support Unit that assists in field operation and data collection to ensure that every field site has access to constant technical support. 


What we’d like for you to take away from this is that the protection of vulnerable communities and their data is a multi-step process-each tool within PRIMES serves a specific purpose and ties into enabling the other aspects of PRIMES as well. You can envision how a refugee who begins with being biometrically verified using IrisGuard will then be able to track their profile and information through the Rapid Application, receive cash assistance through RAIS, and be tracked through over 500 databases internationally. The question remains on how to keep them informed and ensure their rights are being respected, which we look forward to seeing the answers to in committee.



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