These draft guidelines are designed to encourage humanitarian and development non-governmental organisation (NGO) practitioners to think about the types of scientific information and expertise they may need, how to access and use them, and how to en
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sure that they are applied in an ethical and accountable manner. The publication addresses the need to defines the problem and the purpose of integrating science with the users of science, issues around access to science and understanding scientific information, how to apply the science and the important of monitoring and evaluation of impact. Case studies include a project from Christian Aid and the Evangelical Association of Malawi which brought together community members from Village Civil Protection Committees with scientists from the Department of Climate Change and Meteorology and District Council staff responsible for water management and disaster risk reduction in order to tackle a problem of flooding
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Needs assessment is essential for programme planning, monitoring and evaluation, and accountability, however needs assessment is still a critical weakness of humanitarian response. Organisations need to improve how they do assessments. The Assessmen
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t Capacities Project (ACAPS) and the Emergency Capacity Building Project (ECB) have produced this guide to fill the gap that existed for a practical resource that pulls together the main lessons learned from various initiatives and experiences.
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Conceived as part of the CWS-A/P project on regional security and risk management, this book presents a
collection of testimonies from aid workers in some of the most insecure and volatile environments in the world.
The participants recount a broad array of security incidents, such as kidnappings,
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suicide bombings, mob
violence, road ambushes, and point-blank range shootings. Their narrative provides valuable information on
how organizations can manage security risks and streamline safety policies.
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A Toolbox of Conflict Sensitive Indicators.
This toolbox adapts a sample of 15 indicators from the SPHERE Project's Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response to be even mo
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re conflict sensitive while remaining practical and user-friendly
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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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Recommendations and Summary
This report explores the impact of COVID-19 on humanitarian access in the initial months of the crisis, including both the delivery of assistance and performance of protection activities. It examines the varying crisis r
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esponses, including the shift to a more localized approach in certain cases. The analysis draws on case research from Colombia, Myanmar, Nigeria, South Sudan and Yemen, as well as on wide-ranging interviews with humanitarian practitioners and experts from around the world. The research was conducted between August – November 2020. It does not make claims about the legitimacy of government decisions to restrict access – indeed, in many instances, there appeared to be a clear objective of limiting the spread of COVID-19 – but instead focuses on how access limitations have affected the delivery of aid.
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How do local authorities and humanitarian agencies collaborate when refugees are in transit? An IIED-supported research project is looking at the transit refugee response in Croatia.
This short guide highlights the fundamentally similar approach to quality and accountability underlying both sets of standards and describes in some detail the similarities and differences between them. It compares the respective structures of the standards and notes their different emphases. It als
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o highlights new elements contributed by the CHS that were not present in the Sphere Core Standards. Meant as interim guidance for Sphere practitioners as they begin bringing the CHS into their work
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Humanitarian emergencies, regardless of type and cause, have a number of common risk factors for communicable diseases inextricably linked to excess risk of morbidity and mortality which can come from vaccine–preventable diseases (VPDs). The reduc
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tion of VPDs is a significant aim of public-health interventions during crises.
The WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization carried out a comprehensive review of evidence on vaccination decision-making processes and considerations in humanitarian emergencies.
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A step-by-step guide for child protection programmes to the design and implementation of KAP survey methods. In particular, this guide will help to strengthen the quality of our research, monitoring and evaluation work, and enable Save the Children to contribute to a step-change in the child protect
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ion evidence base that is so critically needed. Document also available in French, Spanish and Arabic.
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In this review, the editors will investigate the impact of eight WASH interventions in preventing (reducing the risk of) and controlling outbreaks in LMIC, with particular focus on three diseases of current concern to the response community – cholera, Ebola, and Hepatitis E. Additionally, we will
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explore economic outcomes related to WASH interventions within an outbreak
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A guidance document in simple language for health personnel, setting out their rights and responsibilities in conflict and other situations of violence. It explains how responsibilities and rights for health personnel can be derived from international huma
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nitarian law, human rights law and medical ethics.The document gives practical guidance on:
- The protection of health personnel, the sick and the wounded; - Standards of practice; - The health needs of particularly vulnerable people; - Health records and transmission of medical records; - "Imported" health care (including military health care);
- Data gathering and health personnel as witnesses to violations of international law; - Working with the media
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Conflict, in its active or latent forms, is everywhere. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that public health emergencies can strike any country at any time. Given the universality of and interconnections between conflict, humanitarian crises, a
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nd public health emergencies, practitioners trained in one sector or the other are being called upon to understand how to navigate all of these emergencies at once.
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Building on previous guidelines, the People In Aid Code seeks to offer agencies an effective framework for human resources management, helping them assess and raise their performance.
Humanitarian crises can affect women, men, girls and boys in radically different ways. To address the different impacts of conflict and disasters on each group and promote the potential for positive transformation of gender norms, Oxfam calls for
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humanitarian agencies to analyse, plan, and respond to crises in ways that address practical gender needs and promote women’s rights. Oxfam is committed to promoting gender equality and preventing gender-based violence, through the implementation of its Minimum Standards for Gender in Emergencies. In addition, the promotion of gender equality must be central to the broader efforts to protect civilians and manage and prevent conflict and armed violence.
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The report offers an analysis of the broader challenges to securing humanitarian action and recommends areas for improvement. This study will contribute to improving the way humanitarians ‘do business’ in complex security environments.