The Humanitarian System: Roles, Responsibilities and

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The Humanitarian System Roles, Responsibilities
and Coordination
Module 02
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Learning Objectives

• Have a basic knowledge of the international
  Humanitarian System
• Understand the diversity of actors involved in
  humanitarian action and be able to identify
  common principles upheld by all.
• Understand the purpose and importance of
  coordination
• Be aware of the main humanitarian coordination
  bodies and mechanisms.
• List key sources of resource mobilization for
  humanitarian response

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Humanitarian System Network of Actors

• This figure
• Shows a number of diverse actors involved in
  international and national humanitarian efforts
  affected population, government, UN agencies,
  NGOs, donors, etc
• Provides useful reminder of the role played by
  various actors
• Underscores the need for strong coordination

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Disaster Management Actors at the country level

Host Government
Bi-lateral donors
Target population
UN system and other Agencies
NGOs, Red Cross other civil society members
A U S T R A L I A
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WHY REFORM? Findings from the 2005 Humanitarian
Response Review

• Well-known, long-standing gaps
• Limited inconsistent linkages UN non-UN
• Coordination erratic/personality driven
• Insufficient accountability (particularly for
  IDPs)
• Inconsistent donor policies

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Humanitarian Reform

• Strengthening existing humanitarian response
  through greater
• Accountability
• Predictability
• Leadership
• Partnership

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Roles, Responsibilities and Coordination The 3
Pillars of Reform
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3
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Partnership is the Foundation for Reform

• Partnership amongst UN and non-UN partners
  including government, the civil society
  organizations, NGOs, CBOs and international
  organizations
• Respect for each others mandates
• Recognition of agency-based approaches
• Collaborative and inclusive process
• aims to avoid excessive and unfocused meetings
• builds on the complementarity amongst actors

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Global Humanitarian Platform

• NGOs are major actors in humanitarian assistance
• NGO resources and expertise are often greater
  and may differ from those of UN agencies
• Weaknesses with IASC UN-centric, felt as out of
  touch with or even irrelevant to the realities on
  the ground
• 2005 External Review of the IASC recommended the
  creation of an outreach mechanism -gt Global
  Humanitarian Platform
• GHP is unique due to
• Spirit of equality and informality
• Equal status of all three pillars
• Participation of national NGOs

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GHP Objectives

• Achieve a common understanding on the concept of
  partnership by developing "Principles of
  Partnership".
• Partners to ensure principles permeate their
  operations and actions
• Implement Principles of Partnership at country
  level.
• Dialogue on strategic issues of common concern
• accountability to the populations for, and with,
  whom we work
• strengthening of the capacity of local actors
• the safety and security of the staff
• roles in situations of transition
• Meet annually to take stock of the progress to
  date and make adjustments, where appropriate

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Roles, Responsibilities and Coordination The 3
Pillars of Reform
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3
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Pillar I Humanitarian Coordination United
Nations

• At the top is the Under-Secretary-General for
  Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief
  Coordinator (ERC)
• responsible for oversight of all emergencies
  requiring UN humanitarian assistance
• acts as the central focal point for Governmental,
  intergovernmental and non-governmental relief
  activities
• ERC is the Head of OCHA
• OCHA coordinates the UNs response to complex
  emergencies and natural disasters
• supports the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC) at
  country level in needs assessments, contingency
  planning and the formulation of humanitarian
  programmes
• OCHA also provides response tools, and advocacy
  and information services

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Humanitarian Coordination The IASC

• Chaired by the ERC, the Inter Agency Standing
  Committee (IASC) is an inter-agency forum
  established in 1992 responsible for
• coordination
• policy development and decision-making
• IASC comprises the main UN agencies, the
  International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
  and the INGOs
• The IASC focuses on generic policy issues, whilst
  the IASC Clusters have specific technical areas
  of policy and operational concern

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Coordination Roles and Responsibilities

• UN has designated Humanitarian Coordinators (HC)
  in 29 countries, managed by OCHA, and are
  responsible for leading and coordinating the
  humanitarian action of relevant organisations
  in-country
• In the rest of the countries, this function is
  assumed by the UN Resident Coordinator (RC) who
  is also the Representative of UNDP .
• The HC/RC ensure the following
• Coordination and inclusion of the various
  humanitarian actors
• Coordination and development of a common
  strategic vision
• Articulation of a common strategic plan for
  realizing this vision (e.g. CHAP ? Common
  Humanitarian Action Plan)
• Efficient and effective division of labour among
  organizations (through clusters)

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Coordination Roles and Responsibilities HC/RC
(2)

• Timely, effective and efficient implementation of
  strategic plan by holding cluster leads
  accountable
• By establishing inter-cluster coordination, needs
  assessment, monitoring and evaluation
• Ensuring the strategic plan is funded
• All necessary efforts are made to obtain free,
  timely and unimpeded access to populations in
  need
• International humanitarian and human rights laws
  are promoted and respected

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Coordination Roles and Responsibilities

• Humanitarian coordination is a very demanding
  function as time is of critical concern. Is
  influenced by
• nature and impact of the crisis
• stakeholders capacities
• political commitment of national and
  international players
• National Government or occupying power has
  primary responsibility for the provision (and
  coordination) of response to the territory
  affected by disaster
• Humanitarian agencies have an essential role to
  play by supporting the government and respecting
  their coordination function
• Exceptions are when the authorities are
  themselves responsible for abuse and violations,
  or when their assistance is not impartial

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Coordination Roles and Responsibilities

• National governments may be able to mount their
  own relief operations to help their people
  depending on national capacity and scale of the
  crisis
• The capacity of a national government to
  coordinate and respond to a crisis is determined
  by the existence of
• Clear, pre-determined, lines of authority and
  responsibility
• Knowledge and aptitude within the government to
  manage its relationship with international
  agencies
• Availability of reliable information systems
• The capacity to work constructively with the
  media
• Adequate national technical capacity for
  programmes designed to address emergency
  nutrition problems

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Coordination Roles and Responsibilities

• Inter-Agency Coordination Groups can fill the
  coordination vacuum by coming together and
  working under a common framework in situations
  where there is no recognised government or
  authority
• Some of these coordination groups have been
  complemented by the IASC cluster fora to add
  impetus to emergency focus as seen in Somalia
• NB This does not occur very often

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Collaborative Groupings within the Humanitarian
System - Donors

• The Good Humanitarian Donorship (GHD) initiative
  comprises representatives of government, donors
  and the European Commissions Humanitarian Aid
  Office (ECHO)
• It endorses the principles and good practice of
  humanitarian donorship
• By defining principles and standards, it provides
  a framework to guide official humanitarian aid
  and a mechanism for encouraging greater donor
  accountability

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International Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement
Federation, Committee, National Societies

• International Federation Red Cross Red Crescent
  Societies carries out relief operations together
  with the (global) network of national societies
• Promoting humanitarian values
• Disaster response
• (food, food security, nutrition)
• Disaster preparedness
• (pre-positioning of stocks)
• Health and community care

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International Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement
Federation, Committee, National Societies

• International Committee of the Red Cross
  mandated
• to be the guardian and promoter of international
  humanitarian law
• to protect the lives and dignity of victims of
  armed conflict and other situations of violence
• to provide them with assistance (health,
  protection, detention, tracing, etc).
• Geneva Conventions
• Specific ICRC Statutes used in contexts where
  Geneva Conventions do not apply

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National Societies

• Unique network of 187 member national societies
  which cover almost every country in the world
• Act as auxillaries to the public authorities of
  their own countries in the humanitarian field and
  provide a range of services
• Their local knowledge and experise, access to
  communities and infrastructure enable the
  Movement to reach areas and peoples in need
• During wartime, National Societies assist the
  affected civilian population

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What they do have in common is a commitment to
the seven Red Cross and Red Crescent fundamental
principles humanity, impartiality, neutrality,
independence, voluntary service, unity and
universality
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International NGOs

• NGOs can be distinguished
• by area of speciality
• (nutrition assessments, selective feeding,
  general food rations, livelihood support,
  advocacy)
• by the way they work
• (whether they are operational or work through
  local partners)
• by relationship and dependence on donors
• (whether mainly dependent on donors that provide
  only food assistance or not).
• Sources and mechanisms of funding vary
  enormously.
• Some largely dependent upon government, while
  others have developed mechanisms to access large
  amounts of private and public funding (? greater
  autonomy in strategic direction and geographic
  locations)

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Local NGOs

• Including church-based groups
• Often have a great connectedness to local
  populations and their needs
• Are easily accepted by the community
• Have a great deal of understanding of local
  context and the dynamics of the population, its
  characteristics and socio-political environment
• May have experience in diverse emergency
  situations
• Are usually present before an emergency strikes
  and remain once the crisis is over
• Tend to work at lower levels than international
  NGOs
• Fill gaps that international NGOs may miss
• In general NGOs are responsible for most
  nutritional surveys conducted during emergencies

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Pillar II Funding Mechanisms for Humanitarian
Response
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Initiatives to Strengthen Humanitarian Financing

• Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF)
• Emergency Response Funds (ERFs)
• Pooled Funding
• Good Humanitarian Donorship initiative (GHD)

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CERF doesnt replace appeals it interacts with
them
up to 6 months
6 months on
Flash Appeal Multiple donors
Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP)
Nutrition Cluster SOP plus projects
CERF Project proposals
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What is CERF?

• Rapid response grants (2/3 of the 450 million
  grant facility) available within 24 hours
• To Promote early action and response to reduce
  loss of life
• To Enhance response to time-critical requirements
• To Strengthen core elements of humanitarian
  response in underfunded crisis
• 29 grants were allocated Jan-Sept 2010 to
  support rapid response to new crises
• 2. Under-funded crises (1/3 of grant facility)
• if no other funding source immediately
  available, including agencies own unearmarked
  agency funds and earmarked donor grants. 14 such
  grants were given Jan-Sept 2010 to bolster
  existing under-funded humanitarian operations
• 3. Loans (50 million)
• funding committed but not yet paid or commitment
  very likely
• Spent within 3 months for life-saving needs (no
  op costs)
• Launched in 2006, CERF is managed by OCHA, (but
  cant access) and only UN and IOM (International
  Organisation on Migration) are eligible to apply
  NGOs cannot apply directly

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CERF Decision-Making Process

• CERF funding decisions begin at the country level
  
• Project proposals are submitted and reviewed by
  the cluster members for approach, consistency and
  to ensure that identified needs are prioritised
• Decisions are guided by criteria on what
  constitutes life-saving interventions

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Global Nutrition Cluster

• UNICEF is the Global Nutrition Cluster Lead
  Agency
• Currently more than 30 agencies are part of the
  Global Nutrition Cluster (GNC)
• At global level, the GNC focuses on coordination,
  capacity development, emergency preparedness,
  assessment, monitoring, surveillance and response
  triggers and supplies.
• GNC supports country clusters through
• rolling out a capacity development strategy
• strengthening and expanding a global roster to
  improve surge capacity (e.g., rapid response
  capacity)
• improving the material resourcing of nutritional
  emergencies through establishing supply
  requirements
• producing practical tools to improve the
  consistency and quality of response efforts

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Pillar III The Cluster Approach - Aims

• To close gaps, increase predictability, and
  strengthen response capacity, coordination and
  accountability
• Better linkages with Government/national
  authorities
• More strategic responses
• Better prioritization of available resources

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At the Global Level

• Originally IASC designated lead agencies for 9
  clusters in key response areas
• Global Cluster Leads are accountable to the ERC
  for
• Strengthening system-wide preparedness and
  technical capacity to respond
• Ensuring predictable leadership and
  accountability in designated area of work
• Establishing broader partnership bases
• Setting standards and policy

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Designated Gap Areas or Clusters and Lead
Agencies
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Responsibilities of Cluster Leads at the global
level

• Each Lead Agency works with partners to
• Set Standards and policies
• Documentation and dissemination of best
  practices
• Develop response capacity
• Stand-by rosters surge capacity
• Emergency preparedness
• Provide support to organizations working in the
  field
• Material stockpiles
• Provide Operational Support
• Advocacy and resource mobilization

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At the Country Level

• Country-level IASC designates Lead Agencies
• Each Cluster Lead facilitates a process that
  ensures a well-coordinated and effective
  humanitarian response
• Provider of last resort
• ensure adequate and appropriate response
• subject to access, security and funding
• Ensure agreed priority needs are met
• fill critical gaps
• Cluster Leads at the country level are
  accountable to the HC/RC

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When? of the Cluster Approach

• Contingency Planning Preparedness
• Responses to major new emergencies (sudden
  on-set)
• Rolled-out in on-going/protracted emergencies,
  e.g., Somalia
• Eventually to be used in all countries with
  Humanitarian Coordinators

Where? of the Cluster Approach
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Partnership
Working together is an urgent life-and-death
issue Global Humanitarian Platform
Geneva, July 2007

• - relationship between groups
• - mutual cooperation responsibility
• - for achievement of specified goal

Partnership is essential in todays world
issues are too complex for any one organisation
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Key tools available through the GNC

• Harmonised Training Package for Nutrition in
  Emergencies
• Toolkit for Nutrition in Emergencies
• Factsheet WHO Growth Standards in Emergencies
• Initial Rapid Assessment Tool (developed with
  Health WASH Clusters
• Funded updating of NutVal Software (WFP)
• Funded development of Guidelines for Selective
  Feeding the Management of Malnutrition in
  Emergencies
• Promote use of Sphere Minimum Standards and
  co-funded the revision of the Nutrition and Food
  Security Chapter
• Support for MAM
• literature review (CDC)
• development of decision tool (tree)
• design of product sheet
• development of Guidance Note
• Updating of Cluster Coordinators training
  package
• Development of Handbook (in progress targets
  practitioners within the nutrition cluster and
  other clusters addresses 13 functional areas for
  cluster coordination

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Coordination Processes, Mechanisms and Tools
Nutrition Cluster

• At country level, the nutrition cluster is
  supported by its coordinator and works with
  national and international partners to establish
  and agree a workable coordination mechanism which
  can act as an information sharing and planning
  forum. Its main tasks are
• Organising joint assessments
• Promoting emergency preparedness
• improving coverage of emergency nutrition
  programmes
• Feeding into CAP or Flash Appeals
• Developing agreed plan of action
• Each country coordinator works in a consultative
  and cooperative manner with as many agencies and
  organisations as is appropriate, including the
  national government.

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Building a stronger, more predictable
humanitarian response system

• Partnership underpins all humanitarian action
• Strengthened sectoral coordination
• Stronger and more accountable leadership
• Flexible, adequate and timely funding
• No longer reform, but the way we do business!

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What does this mean for YOU?

• Change attitudes and way you work
• genuine partnerships and accountability!
• Build on achievements
• - ensure, deliver better product
• IMPACT on vulnerable populations
• Improve preparedness and contingency planning
• Better linkages to recovery and development
• Improve support to governments and local capacity
  development

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PARTNERSHIPPARTNERSHIPPARTNERSHIP
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Any questions?