Standards In Humanitarian Action

Question 1

Learning Objectives

Answer 1

• Why do we need minimum standards in humanitarian assistance
• Where do they come from
• The Sphere Project and the Common Humanitarian Standard
• Some concerns about minimum standards
• Some examples of standards in practice and an introduction to advocacy

Question 2

Why do we need standards?

Answer 2

• Agreed standards represent an ethos of practice which - if clear and agreed by all actors and observers - will:
• Help meet needs in an effective, transparent and fair way
• Contribute to a decision-making framework
• Help to establish trust between diverse actors
• Facilitate accountability
• Save time!

Question 3

Why do we need standards specifically for humanitarian action?

Answer 3

• If they are going to be universal standards, to take into account:
• Insecurity
• Limited resources
• Disrupted services
• Previously established standards
• Someone else’s beliefs and customs
• The former ‘normal’
• Future sustainability

Question 4

What was the sphere project 1997?

Answer 4

• The most influential attempt to agree on minimum standards
• Minimum standards and a humanitarian charter
• Drew on many existing guidelines and protocols
• To improve the quality of humanitarian assistance
  and to ensure accountability.

Question 5

Who created the Sphere project?

Answer 5

• The project was created in 1997 by humanitarian NGO’s and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent movement
• Four new editions have kept it up to date and included new priority areas.

Question 6

Why was the Sphere project created in 1997?
What was the trigger?

Answer 6

• Lessons were learned from the Rwanda experience
• Following the 1994 exodus from Rwanda after the genocide there were epidemics of water-related diseases, principally cholera and dysentery. Within a month these led to the death of 6–10% of those arriving in Zaire (now DRC)
• The crude death rate of 20–35 per 10,000 population per day was 2–3 times higher than that previously reported in refugee populations

Question 7

What are the 2 main categories from the Sphere handbook?

Answer 7

• Foundation Chapters
• Techical Chapters

Question 8

What does the foundation chapters consist of?

Answer 8

1. What is Sphere?
2. The Humanitarian Charter
3. Protection Principles
4. Core Humanitarian Standard

Question 9

What does technical chapters consist of?

Answer 9

1. Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion (WASH)
2. Food Security and Nutrition
3. Shelter and Settlement
4. Health

Question 10

What does the Sphere Handbook 2018 offer?

Answer 10

• The Sphere Handbook 2018 offers an integrated approach to humanitarian work incorporating humanitarian principles, the core humanitarian standard and technical standards.

Question 11

What is the humanitarian charter about?

Answer 11

• Summarises the core legal principles that are the most relevant for the welfare of people affected by disaster or conflict

Question 12

What are the minimum standards, key indicators and key actions in the humanitarian charter?

Answer 12

• Minimum standards: Are universal and quite general. E.g. People have access to health services that are prioritised to address the main causes of excess mortality and morbidity
• Key actions - outline suggested practical steps to reach the standard that may or may not be relevant for all contexts, for example: Identify vulnerable people (e.g. women, children, older people, persons with disabilities, etc.) who may be at particular risk
• Key indicators – is the standard being reached? They are context and time specific, for example:
  The under-5 mortality rate (U5MR) is maintained at, or reduced to, less than double the baseline rate documented for the population prior to the disaster

Question 13

According to the video, what makes these programmes effective?

Answer 13

• Delivery of food aid
• Ensuring children get adequate nutrition

Question 14

What questions are raised when deciding what can be wrong with standards?

Answer 14

• Are they applicable in all situations?
• Who is held accountable if they are not met?
• Who drew them up?
• Do they have universal acceptance?

Question 15

How do we work to ensure that standards are met?

Answer 15

• Need to take into account:
• The effects of the armed conflict, insecurity or disaster including on the staff and resources
• Other priorities that may take precedence, or be perceived to take precedence
• The history of the conflict or disaster and relationships between the actors involved
• What resources do you have / can you contribute
• Sustainability

Question 16

List the urban trends of standards in practice

Answer 16

• Most of the forcibly displaced live outside of camps: An estimated 80-90% in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region live in towns and cities, compared to 60% globally, and 40% a few years ago (World Bank Dec 2017)
• “60% percent of the world’s refugees are in urban areas. In some cities, they represent more than the ‘existing or traditional’ minority group. Both socially and spatially, refugees tend to create a glue-type component in a city, filling the gaps and tying up loose ends”
• While large cities are the most affected considering absolute numbers, the impact in secondary cities and towns close to borders of conflict affected countries is especially stark
• Those displaced by conflict tend to stay close to home: For each refugee displaced in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions there are almost 5 IDPs.

Question 17

What are the problems that occur even when you have standards?

Answer 17

• Supplementary & therapeutic feeding
• Are you able to reach more children with less food or fewer children with adequate food

Question 18

In terms of the Sphere standards and advocacy, what was the malaria response

Answer 18

• Taking into account:
• Use national standards, including essential medicine lists, and adapt to the emergency context.
• People have access to effective diagnosis and treatment for infectious diseases that contribute most significantly to morbidity and mortality.