USA Africa Dialogue Series - United Nations’ drones: A sign of what’s to come?

News that the United Nations is using drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) to collect information in the troubled east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) illustrates the growing use – and acceptance - of surveillance technologies in humanitarian operations.
The deployment of two drones by the UN Stabilisation Mission (MONUSCO) in the DRC last week, to assist the Mission in fulfilling its mandate to protect civilians, had been long foreshadowed, with requests for their use in the eastern DRC dating back to 2008; the UN Security Council effectively authorised MONUSCO to use drones in January 2013 following a 2012 letter from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon commenting on the ability of drones "to enhance situational awareness and permit timely decision-making" in the eastern DRC.

If drones are the first step in implementing this NSA-lite vision of UN Peacekeeping Operations, their deployment in eastern DRC may represent a deeply concerning development. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that in the same briefing, the Force Commander was careful to note "certain sensitivities and limitations that need to be recognised":

"The use of surveillance devices could be regarded as overly intrusive by host nations if not adequately controlled, including the information that is generated. … Advanced technology also often requires skilled operators and analysis to support it. Such resources are often in scarce supply, particularly for the United  Nations …"