USAID’s Bureau for Conflict Prevention and Stabilization (CPS) partners with countries affected by conflict and violence to build the foundations for peace and stability. To that end, the CPS Bureau analyzes the risks and opportunities of digital tools technologies and, if deemed appropriate in coordination with local staff and partners, will then integrate their use into programs and policy priorities.

Digital technologies can support conflict prevention and stabilization, particularly when they are responsibly used for effective public service delivery or to help information flow between citizens. In contrast to its potential as a force for empowerment and equality, digitalization has also enabled new and scaling trends of repression, manipulation, surveillance, ideological polarization, criminal or extremist expansion, gender-based violence, and the erosion of social cohesion and stability. As such, digital literacy is an increasingly critical consideration when integrating digital technologies for conflict prevention and stabilization.