Vanquishing violence and vulnerability in humanitarian settings
Background paper for the joint African Union–UNAIDS (in capacity of serving
Chair of H6) high-level side event at the 73rd Unite
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d Nations General Assembly,
24 September 2018, at UNHQ, Conference Room 3
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The aim of this paper is to map and critically analyse evidence of good practice in prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian contexts which can support humanitarian pra
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ctitioners and policy makers to improve the quality of GBV programming in the field. The paper is structured as follows. Following a brief discussion of key concepts and definitions in relation to GBV, Chapter 2 presents an overview of the extent of GBV in emergencies, and some of the challenges in responding to the problem. Chapter 3 then analyses some of the literature on the evidence of GBV programming effects in humanitarian settings, and draws out key lessons with regard to good practice. Chapter 4 discusses some of the key issues emerging from this review, and Chapter 5 concludes the paper with a discussion of the implications of the findings for research, policy and programming on GBV.
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The CB MHPSS operational guidelines were developed in response to emerging evidence on the determinants of children’s resilience, lessons learned from the evaluation of existing approaches, and the unique challenges that today’s crises pose for children’s safety, wellbeing and optimal developm
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ent.
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This Toolkit is intended to guide humanitarian programme managers and healthcare providers to ensure that sexual and reproductive health interventions put into place both during and after a crisis are responsive to the unique needs of adolescents.
This Guidance Note is meant to help protection cluster coordinators apply nexus approaches in a practical way by, providing concrete steps and means to address prevalent or longstanding protection issues, risk patterns, trends and chronic vulnerabilities. The guidance calls for a practical, problem-
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solving approach that seeks opportunities to identify and collaborate with actors beyond the humanitarian sphere to address deep-rooted protection issues
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This Interim Guidance outlines how key public health and social measures needed to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread and the impact of the disease can be adapted for use in low capacity and humanitarian s
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ettings. The recommendations outlined here need to be adjusted to the scale of transmission, context and resources, in order to achieve the objective of managing COVID-19, namely to reduce transmission and facilitate the detection and management of infected and exposed individuals within the population. The Guidance is intended for humanitarian and development actors of all operational levels working with communities ocal authorities involved in COVID-19 preparedness and response operations in these settings, in support of national and local governments and plans. Additional considerations for support to residents of urban informal settlements and slums are available in Annex 1.
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This document is for humanitarian health actors working at national and sub-national level in countries facing humanitarian emergencies. It applies to Health Cluster partners, including governmental
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and non-governmental health service providers.
Based on the IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings (IASC, 2007), it gives an overview of essential knowledge that humanitarian health actors should have about mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in humanitarian emergencies.
This document by the IASC Reference Group for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support was developed in consultation with the IASC Global Health Cluster.
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Gender-based violence is a life-threatening, global health and human rights issue that violates international human rights law and principles of gender equality. It is also a threat to lasting peace and an affront to our common humanity. United Nations Member States have called for urgent action to
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end GBV in emergencies, recognizing that in crises, the risk of GBV is heightened, particularly for women and adolescent girls.
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This new guidance aims to support programme implementers, coordinators and others in humanitarian settings in their actions to counter suicide and self-harm in
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humanitarian contexts and to save lives.
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This paper has been commissioned by RedR to identify gaps in skills, technology, and knowledge in urban humanitarian response in order to inform RedR’s project Ready to Respond which is looking to address these gaps in two specific areas:
Wat
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er supply, sanitation, and hygiene; Shelter response to earthquakes
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Fills a gap in current guidance on how to implement humanitarian standards in urban situations. In Arabic, English, French and Spanish available
Results from studies evaluating the effectiveness of focused psychosocial support interventions in children exposed to traumatic events in humanitarian settings in low-income and middle-income count
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ries have been inconsistent, showing varying results by setting and subgroup (eg, age or gender). We aimed to assess the effectiveness of these interventions, and to explore which children are likely to benefit most.
Lancet Glob Health 2018; 6: e390–400
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The purpose of this guide is to provide practical advice for health staff undertaking infectious disease preparedness and response activities to ensure that access to safe abortion care (SAC) is maintained when an infectious disease outbreak occurs. It is an operational guide which can serve to supp
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ort health actors to maintain SAC services during outbreaks and ensure that necessary SAC considerations are integrated within outbreak responses; it is not a clinical guide. The locational focus of this document is humanitarian and fragile settings; however, recommendations may apply to infectious disease outbreaks in all low-resource populations. This guide is intended to complement Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights During Infectious Disease Outbreaks: Operational Guidance for Humanitarian and Fragile Settings.
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Humanitarian emergencies result in a breakdown of critical health-care services and often make vulnerable communities dependent on external agencies for care. In resource-constrained settings, this
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may occur against a backdrop of extreme poverty, malnutrition, insecurity, low literacy and poor infrastructure. Under these circumstances, providing food, water and shelter and limiting communicable disease outbreaks become primary concerns. Where effective and safe vaccines are available to mitigate the risk of disease outbreaks, their potential deployment is a key consideration in meeting emergency health needs. Ethical considerations are crucial when deciding on vaccine deployment. Allocation of vaccines in short supply, target groups, delivery strategies, surveillance and research during acute humanitarian emergencies all involve ethical considerations that often arise from the tension between individual and common good. The authors lay out the ethical issues that policy-makers need to bear in mind when considering the deployment of mass vaccination during humanitarian emergencies, including beneficence (duty of care and the rule of rescue), non-maleficence, autonomy and consent, and distributive and procedural justice
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Each humanitarian setting provides distinct opportunities and challenges for actors to coordinate and collaborate at strategic and operational levels. The Health and Protection Joint Operational Framework has been developed to ensure that the health
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and protection response during humanitarian emergencies can adapt to each environment and is adequately coordinated to ensure high-quality services to meet the needs of affected individuals and at-risk groups based on their situation or vulnerabilities.
The Health and Protection JOF was conceived in 2019 as a collaboration between the Global Health Cluster (GHC), the Global Protection Cluster (GPC) and its Areas of Responsibility (AoRs), the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Reference Group on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings (IASC MHPSS RG), and the Inter-Agency Working Group for Reproductive Health in Crisis (IAWG), in addition to key technical experts.
A Steering Group (SG) comprised of representatives from each of these entities guided the framework through a joint global analysis of good practices, gaps, and barriers to integrated and inter-sectoral response coordination. This included a mixed methods review of policy and practice, a survey of humanitarian experts, multiple case studies, structured stakeholder interviews, and field visits. This exercise produced a zero-draft which was then reviewed by field practitioners in three operational contexts to clarify and fully coordinate its operationally focused lens. Finally, the JOF was reviewed by the SG including via a series of consultations in early 2023 to consolidate the current framework.
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Women and girls with mental and intellectual disabilities were perceived to be most at risk of sexual violence, and family and service providers may only become aware of sexual violence against them when they become pregnant.
Discrimination by GBV service providers, family and community members was
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the most common barrier to access. Inadequate transportation and inappropriate communication approaches were also common impediments.
On this website you can download the report in different languages,
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It is targeted towards humanitarian settings and aims to complement other guidance on the management of the dead with a stronger focus on the practical realities faced when dealing with the dead in
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humanitarian settings. The guidance offers practical recommendations for the management of the bodies or human remains of persons who died from COVID-19
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This Toolkit aims to support the understanding and implementation of integrated mental health programs in humanitarian settings. It provides a framework for essential steps and components, with asso
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ciated key guidance and resources, that strengthen the integration process, and is primarily intended for (1) implementing agencies, but may also be useful for (2) donors, and (3) government actors. Users can access the three steps & three cross cutting components relevant to current program needs, or stages of programming.
Accessed August 7, 2019
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The International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have newly developed "Caring for Child Survivors of Sexual Abuse Guidelines" for health and psychosocial providers in humanitarian
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settings - “CCS Guidelines”. The CCS Guidelines are based on global research and evidence-based field practice, and bring a much-needed fresh and practical approach to helping child survivors, and their families, recover and heal from the oftentimes devastating impacts of sexual abuse. The guidelines walk the reader through the core knowledge, attitude and skill competencies required for service providers to effectively care for children and families affected by sexual abuse. In addition, the guidelines outline how to provide case management and basic psychosocial care for child survivors, as well as best practices for coordinating care.
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