Amal Al Azzeh

Brilliant piece by Matthew Tebbutt based on a great discussion paper co-written with various local actor partners who work with Christian Aid. Definitely bringing the needed questions to the table. Here are my favorite: 1) If people say they want cash, why do so many processes also rely on us proving they can spend it responsibly?  2) Cash is an inherently simple concept, amid the need for consolidation, interoperability, digitisation etc is there a way for us to find a way back to the basics for smaller scale actors?  3) Can we understand scale better by looking at the combined impacts of multiple small interventions rather than just through the lens of efficiency? #localization #localactors #locallyledresponses #CVA

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To #decolonize themselves, #western #humanitarian organizations need to fundamentally change the way they operate. This requires them to challenge their own cultural and political #biases and adopt a more respectful and equitable approach to the affected communities. This also requires a critical review of their funding sources and capacity to deliver #independent and #impartial responses. 

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Direct funding to local and national actors, as a share of total humanitarian assistance is only 1.2%, would be good to see the key players walking the walk instead of the pledging and not following through we consistently see #Charter4Change #Localisation

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The Community Insight Survey for Cash-Based Programs, by iMMAP Inc and CVWG in Afghanistan, provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of cash-based humanitarian assistance in the country. The survey covers various provinces across diverse regions of Afghanistan and sheds light on the positive effects of cash assistance on household well-being, while also identifying significant gaps in meeting basic needs, particularly in areas of food, healthcare, and education. Additionally, the survey highlights the diverse preferences among recipients regarding the type and frequency of cash assistance. This emphasizes the importance of designing flexible programs and creating linkages with resilience and alternative economic security activities. for more check out here. https://lnkd.in/dhbZdifp. iMMAP Inc. Çağrı Çebişli NORCAP - part of the Norwegian Refugee Council CALP Network

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How to work safely, effectively and responsibly in fragile contexts? At Helvetas, we think this boils down to three things: 1. A nexus approach: programmes that work in the nexus of humanitarian, development and peacebuilding action. 2. Adaptive management: ensuring our programme management, partnerships, and security management adapt to the context and are conflict sensitive 3. Agile support: having the human resources, infrastructure and financial set-up that enables us to act and adapt quickly. Thank you to Ms. Adam Diouf and Andrew Wilson for sharing their insights about what this means in practice in Burkina Faso and Myanmar. To read more about our vision of Keeping Fit for Fragility and how we plan to get there, check out our action plan https://lnkd.in/exyVprMJ #triplenexus #fragility

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✨ 📣 A new independent #evaluation into the response of #IASC Member Organizations and their in-country partners to the #humanitarian crisis in Northern #Ethiopia finds that although critical aid was delivered, the collective response to the needs of people in Northern Ethiopia was not adequate. https://lnkd.in/eVHy2HiY   This is an independent assessment of the humanitarian response to the crisis in the three northern regions of Ethiopia between November 2020 and April 2023. It finds that external factors—including an extensive blockade of the Tigray region—greatly impacted operations, with serious implications for both affected people and humanitarian staff. It notes the perseverance of IASC members and partners in delivering critical aid in extremely difficult conditions. However, it also found that humanitarian leadership within Ethiopia was ineffective, and that the response was not sufficiently underpinned by humanitarian principles.    📑 Read the full report here: 👉https://lnkd.in/e4vBt9Ga 👈 Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Mervat Shelbaya United Nations OCHA Ramiz Alakbarov Robert McCouch Kerry Albright Michele Tarsilla, Ph.D. in Evaluation Carlotta Tincati

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Thanks to Centre on Armed Groups and CCDP - Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding for last week's gathering in Geneva on engaging with armed groups. There was a lot of experience in the room - a credit to the reputation and networks of both organisations. Some key points from the session I moderated on the challenges for engagement (obligatory photo of me looking coherent below): 💡Armed groups have various motivations from ideological and political ("grievance") to economic ("greed") - and not all armed groups have a desire to govern. However, we tend to have a blind spot on the political economy of armed groups, with our engagement tools prioritising groups' political ambitions. 💡 Armed groups are part of an "international market" with funding from international backers, and with many taking on a "franchise model" - sharing branding and operations across international boundaries. However, engagement strategies tend to plan for armed groups as isolated actors operating within national boundaries. 💡The global connections of armed groups means it is harder to achieve international consensus on each groups status and legitimacy, and the polices for addressing/engaging them - put simply global players are backing different armed groups on the ground. 💡Irrespective of perceptions of a group's status and legitimacy, isolation as a tool does not work. Instead, we should establish very clear goals for engagement, and for measuring the success of engagement - both short (e.g., supporting women's rights) and long term (e.g., enabling 'softliners'). 💡(My own take) We should rethink the infrastructure for engaging with armed groups. We tend to start with "who" should engage (e.g., UN or "Track 2" peace mediation organisations). Instead we should start with "why", and then work backwards to identify who is best placed to achieve that goal - the answers may surprise us.

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🔉How can we ensure that Afghanistan’s climate solutions are rooted in the experiences of its communities? Afghanistan ranks eighth among 170 nations in vulnerability to climate change—with nearly 60% of the population affected by climate shocks, compared to 19% by security-related shocks. While there have been efforts to address these issues, including bans on forest cutting and promoting reforestation, the ability of communities to cope with droughts, floods, and extreme weather has reduced. 🚨 Climate change disproportionately impacts Afghan women and girls. Often serving as "shock absorbers," they face heightened risks such as food insecurity, dropping out of school, forced marriages, and gender-based violence. Water scarcity further increases these threats, displacing more people than conflict and increasing vulnerabilities, particularly for women and people with disabilities. Afghanistan also urgently needs a systematic Early Warning System (EWS) for effective disaster risk reduction. Engagement is particularly vital when addressing climate challenges—there is no excuse not to act to protect men, women, youth, girls, and boys. Each of these groups, some more than others, need our support. 🔍 As we reflect on the past three years, it's evident that climate change is a crisis we cannot afford to ignore. It intersects with and impacts every aspect of life in Afghanistan, affecting everyone. Our partnership with Resilience, Environment and Humanitarian Aid (REHA) Organization is crucial for tackling the climate and water crisis in Afghanistan. Our added value lies in working with all stakeholders to address this crisis for the benefit of the Afghan population. Our focus is on localising knowledge by engaging directly with communities and capturing their perceptions of climate change. 📘 Our latest learning brief amplifies these local voices—men, women, and children—providing insights, good practices  and recommendations that are both culturally relevant and practically actionable. This collaboration underscores the importance of integrating community perspectives with broader research and implementation strategies to confront Afghanistan's urgent climate challenges. Find the brief here:  https://lnkd.in/djkcEkKC

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🔉How can we ensure that Afghanistan’s climate solutions are rooted in the experiences of its communities? Afghanistan ranks eighth among 170 nations in vulnerability to climate change—with nearly 60% of the population affected by climate shocks, compared to 19% by security-related shocks. While there have been efforts to address these issues, including bans on forest cutting and promoting reforestation, the ability of communities to cope with droughts, floods, and extreme weather has reduced. 🚨 Climate change disproportionately impacts Afghan women and girls. Often serving as "shock absorbers," they face heightened risks such as food insecurity, dropping out of school, forced marriages, and gender-based violence. Water scarcity further increases these threats, displacing more people than conflict and increasing vulnerabilities, particularly for women and people with disabilities. Afghanistan also urgently needs a systematic Early Warning System (EWS) for effective disaster risk reduction. Engagement is particularly vital when addressing climate challenges—there is no excuse not to act to protect men, women, youth, girls, and boys. Each of these groups, some more than others, need our support. 🔍 As we reflect on the past three years, it's evident that climate change is a crisis we cannot afford to ignore. It intersects with and impacts every aspect of life in Afghanistan, affecting everyone. Our partnership with Resilience, Environment and Humanitarian Aid (REHA) Organization is crucial for tackling the climate and water crisis in Afghanistan. Our added value lies in working with all stakeholders to address this crisis for the benefit of the Afghan population. Our focus is on localising knowledge by engaging directly with communities and capturing their perceptions of climate change. 📘 Our latest learning brief amplifies these local voices—men, women, and children—providing insights, good practices and recommendations that are both culturally relevant and practically actionable. This collaboration underscores the importance of integrating community perspectives with broader research and implementation strategies to confront Afghanistan's urgent climate challenges. Find the brief here: https://lnkd.in/djkcEkKC

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In Mali, the #RHFWCA helps provide access to health and education for communities recovering from conflict. Two Malian NGOs, #AMSS and #FEDE, repaired the school, trained teachers, and ensured students received the necessary supplies. The project also stocked up school canteens to ensure hunger was not an obstacle to learning. With funding from the RHFWCA, #ACTED’s project aims to increase access to maternal health and nutrition support in the commune. The project supported six health centers, providing free care and deploying a mobile clinic for people in rural areas. https://lnkd.in/eQBtd2xY United Nations OCHA OCHA Financing and Partnerships United Nations OCHA in Mali Alain Noudéhou Amy Martin #InvestinHumanity

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Quite an eye-opening read on how 🇷🇺 and 🇧🇾 proxies are stepping up their #disinformation game to undermine civil society. They are twisting facts, spreading misleading stories, and using state media to prop up the government while discrediting independent voices. Worth remembering, it’s not just happening in Belarus - these tactics are popping up across the region to weaken NGOs and civil society groups. Understanding these info ops is crucial if we want to push back and protect the #truth. The article details the DISARM methodology, which is a good-enough tool for spotting and analyzing these disinformation efforts. For those investing in #democracy and the civil society, this is a must-read. #Disinformation #CivilSociety #Russia #Belarus #InfoOps

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT! South Sudan launched the Women's Charter, empowering women & girls to engage with the Reconstituted National Constitutional Review Commission & articulate their concerns in the Permanent Constitution-making process. The Charter articulates the essential priorities & demands of women and girls for the Permanent Constitution, advocating for comprehensive legal, policy, and programmatic interventions across twelve critical themes. The 12 critical themes include: Political participation Education Marriage Property ownership & inheritance Health & reproductive rights Economic and social welfare rights Quality & freedom from discrimination, Protection of elderly & women with disabilities: Protection against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Access to justice Environment, natural resources and climate security Public finance management reforms. Charter: 👇 https://lnkd.in/dXP46yUk

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Hands down the most important recurring forum in human history: ➡️All components of the world’s largest humanitarian movement ➡️All 196 States party to #GenevaConventions ➡️Guided by #Humanity #Neutrality & #Impartiality ➡️Focus on what unites rather than divides humanity #RCRC24

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A new independent #evaluation into the response of #IASC Member Organizations and their in-country partners to the #humanitarian crisis in northern #Ethiopia finds that although critical aid was delivered, the collective response to the needs of people in Northern Ethiopia was not adequate.    This is an independent assessment of the humanitarian response to the crisis in the three northern regions of Ethiopia between November 2020 and April 2023. It finds that external factors—including an extensive blockade of the Tigray region—greatly impacted operations, with serious implications for both affected people and humanitarian staff. It notes the perseverance of IASC members and partners in delivering critical aid in extremely difficult conditions. However, it also found that humanitarian leadership within Ethiopia was ineffective, and that the response was not sufficiently underpinned by humanitarian principles.    Read the full report here 👉 bit.ly/456yKWE United Nations OCHA Ramiz Alakbarov ALNAP ICVA (International Council of Voluntary Agencies) IOM - UN Migration UNDP United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency UNICEF World Food Programme World Health Organization FAO United Nations Human Rights UN Women International Committee of the Red Cross - ICRC International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies - IFRC Gareth Price-Jones United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) Jamie Munn Humanitarian Practice Network Ground Truth Solutions CHS Alliance Start Network Humanitarian Outcomes HERE-Geneva Ed Schenkenberg van Mierop Juliet Parker Nicole Henze Gabriella Waaijman Hiwotie Simachew Mervat Shelbaya

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What I like about this publication is the clarity. The sections are concise with specific direction on how to be accountable and support others in reflecting on the concrete ways they can reinforce zero-tolerance. Even if you don't work at the UN but ARE working on PSEA, I recommend reviewing this for clear insight and direction. #PSEA

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Myanmar is experiencing severe flooding and mudslides, triggered by Typhoon Yagi’s remnants. Around 1 million people have been impacted, with over 360 fatalities and more than 100 missing. Marginalized groups, including internally displaced persons, women, and children, are particularly vulnerable. Women and girls face heightened challenges due to pre-existing vulnerabilities and gender roles, exacerbating the gendered impacts of the disaster. Here is an interesting update on the gender impact of the disaster: https://lnkd.in/gsp8Fvgv Cleanup efforts are underway as floodwaters recede, but the damage to infrastructure, farmlands, and homes is significant. This crisis is worsening Myanmar’s already strained humanitarian situation, with the destruction of schools, roads, and telecom networks hindering recovery. To address the growing crisis, there is an urgent need for increased funding, with the 2024 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan currently only 28% funded. Additionally, humanitarian organizations must have unrestricted, unimpeded access to affected areas to effectively deliver emergency assistance and support recovery.

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There is a huge interest in capacity-strengthening programs for local NGOs in Ukraine. First of all, I want to remind everyone that capacity strengthening should happen only when local NGO wants it. It shouldn’t be manipulation and deadlines to develop “policy”. It should be organic growth in speed that is comfortable for this organization. It should be with respect the time that organizations spend on actual response. If you come to them with training, they would probably continue their work at night and during breaks. A second reminder, as we National Network of Local Philanthropy Development wrote in an open letter “If not now, so when?” 2 years ago, “Start learning from us”. Local NGOs have a lot of expertise on how things work for their community, local legislation, and other stuff. Learn from them first to start teaching. I also wrote some other recommendations on how to prepare and what to consider for building capacity-strengthening programs for Ukrainian NGOs. Please follow the link to read more.

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From our own experience responding to disaster events in our own communities we know that response is not resilience. Noble as the work may be, it's still just a consequence of a failure to prepare. Sadly, there is almost no support for true local preparedness because it's not as visually impressive, it's not as viral as showing up after bad things have already happened to give hand-outs to people we could have helped avoid the indignity of having to line up for charity for lack of any other options to deal with disasters. Typhoon Yagi is a good reference of the kind of storms that we might expect in the next few months, if we're unlucky, maybe even stronger. We still need support for our Resilience Workshops for our local teams and community volunteers in some of the most disaster-vulnerable areas of the Philippines. Message me if you or your company want to do more and actually save human lives and that of other living things (animal rescue is included in our work). This is why we ride. #wearebikescouts https://lnkd.in/dhTD9FgV

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