Mapping digital welfare platforms globally: functional typologies, governance gaps, and policy implications

This study presents the first comprehensive global mapping and inductive classification of digital welfare platforms. Drawing on an original dataset of 285 cases spanning diverse institutional and geographical contexts, it identifies five core functional types: service delivery, information repository, search engine, value co-creation, and community-building. Using a multidimensional descriptive approach and a structured decision-tree model, the analysis reveals significant divergence in governance arrangements, user orientation, monetisation strategies, and business models. While digital platforms are often promoted as tools for enhancing accessibility and efficiency, the findings expose critical systemic voids - particularly in public sector involvement, youth-focused provision, and accountability mechanisms. The study highlights the fragmented and commercially skewed nature of emerging digital welfare infrastructures, raising pressing concerns about equity, inclusion, and the normative trajectories shaping welfare governance in the platform era.