January 2026 GSMA Mobile forHumanitarian Innovation The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobileecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovationfoundational to positive business environments and societalchange. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivityso that people, industry, and society thrive. Representingmobile operators and organisations across the mobileecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for itsmembers across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good,Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activityincludes advancing policy, tackling today’s biggest societalchallenges, underpinning the technology and interoperabilitythat make mobile work, and providing the world’s largestplatform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC andM360 series of events. The GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation programmeworks to accelerate the delivery and impact of digitalhumanitarian assistance. This is achieved by building alearning and research agenda to inform the future of digitalhumanitarian response, catalysing partnerships and innovationfor new digital humanitarian services, advocating for enablingpolicy environments, monitoring and evaluating performance,disseminating insights and profiling achievements. Learn more atwww.gsma.com/m4hor contact us atm4h@gsma.com We invite you to find out more atwww.gsma.com Authors Chloé Cahart, TDS GroupChristophe Debray, TDS GroupOlivier Galichet, TDS GroupCharlotte Thomas, TDS GroupRoxana Mullafiroze, Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation, GSMA Contributors Susanna Acland, Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation, GSMA Acknowledgments This report was prepared with valuable inputs from several of France’s Mobile Network Operators (MNOs): Bouygues Telecom,Free, OPT, Orange, SFR and Zeop. We are grateful for their time, operational insights, and lessons shared through key informantinterviews and the field visit to Paris. We would like to thank the Directorate General for Civil Security and Crisis Management (DGSCGC), Defence ElectronicCommunications Commissariat (CCED), Digital Transformation Directorate, Interministerial Crisis Management OperationsCentre (COGIC), Interministerial Civil Protection Services (SIDPC), Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, PostalServices and Press Distribution (ARCEP) and Intersec. These stakeholders offered strategic and technical insights that helpedtell the full story of FR-Alert from conception to deployment. We also extend our appreciation to Romain Moutard, formerProgram Director of FR-Alert at the Digital Transformation Directorate, for his valuable guidance. At the local level, we thank the prefectures of Nord (Lille), Bouches-du-Rhône and Yvelines, the Northern Zonal OperationalCentre (COZ Nord) and the Postal and Telecommunications Office in New Caledonia for their unique operational perspectives. We also thank the Agency for Operational Mobile Communications for Security and Emergency Services (ACMOSS), EuropeanEmergency Number Association (EENA) and International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for their insights and broaderperspective regarding mobile-based early warning systems. Contents Executive summary21Introduction32Methodology53France’s disaster risk profile74The mobile landscape in France115France’s approach to disaster management and governance156France’s mobile-based early warning system: FR-Alert206.1Policy and regulation246.2Stakeholders and coordination276.3Technology and infrastructure326.4Financial model416.5The future of FR-Alert437Considerations for effective MNO engagement in early warning systems458Conclusion49 Executive summary This report examines FR-Alert, France’s mobile-basedearly warning system (EWS), and highlights how effectivecollaboration with mobile network operators (MNOs) canstrengthen EWS globally. Launched in 2022, FR-Alert marks a majormodernisation of France’s EWS, introducing mobile-based alerts on a national scale. The transition froma siren-based network to dual mobile disseminationtechnologies was driven by successive crises,including the 2019 Lubrizol industrial fire, and by the2018 European Union directive for all Member Statesto implement a national EWS with mobile alertingcapabilities. 4.Building public trust and awarenessincreasesthe effectiveness of alerts and gives communitiesthe tools to take appropriate action. 5.Adoption of the Common Alerting Protocol(CAP)enables consistent messaging acrossdissemination channels and interoperabilitybetween MNOs. 6.Multi-channel alertingmaximises the reachof alerts to the widest possible audience,complementing core mobile technologies withtraditional dissemination methods. The result is a comprehensive system thatcombines cell broadcast (CB) and location-basedSMS (LB-SMS) mobile technologies, coversboth mainland and overseas France and is fullyembedded in national disaster management (NDM)processes. MNOs have played an instrumental rolein the success of FR-Alert, coordinat