Overlapping disaster and conflict events reveal gaps in displacement reporting in the Philippines

Abstract Disasters and conflict increasingly overlap in driving human displacement, yet humanitarian systems have traditionally reported displacement events in silos, leaving communities overlooked. Little is known about who is left out and how reporting gaps occur. We conduct a comparative analysis of data reporting in the Philippines, examining cases of the Marawi Siege and Severe Tropical Storm Tembin (Vinta) in 2017 and Severe Tropical Storm Nalgae (Paeng) in 2022. We present disparities in the frequency, temporal and spatial coverage of complex displacement reporting. Our results provide empirical evidence of exclusion in complex displacement reporting that arises from event-based reporting frameworks that prioritise discrete, single-hazard responses that overlook politically sensitive crises. We highlight that capturing displacement data is not only an accounting exercise – it constructs the way displacement is understood. We argue for more dynamic, multi-trigger displacement tracking and for the use of integrated displacement and conflict data in advancing anticipatory action.