Humanitarian Coordination and Localisation sessions during HNPW

The Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week was organised by OCHA in Geneva from 3 to 7 February 2020 and one of the main themes of the week was Localization and Humanitarian. The session on this theme was in plenary and started with a panel discussion in the morning. The panel consisted of representatives from Vanuatu Business Resilience Council, People’s Disaster Risk Reduction Network (PDRRN), ASEAN, Permanent Mission of Australia to the UN in Geneva and Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Secretariat.   The panel discussion was moderated by the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) who the Co-convenors of the Grand Bargain Workstream on Localization. The panel discussion was followed by short introductions ‘teasers’ for the coming different topics under the theme on Localization and Humanitarian Coordination.

One of the topics was on Localisation in Cluster Coordination. Speakers for this topic included representatives from Save the Children, Humanitarian Forum Indonesia, UNICEF (Child Protection AoR) and UNFPA (Gender-Based Violence AoR). Michael Copland, Child Protection AoR Coordinator, was the moderator of this session. The presentations were followed by an interactive workshop where the participants had to decide on Localization and Cluster Coordination should: ‘Stop doing, Start doing and Continue doing’ in improve localisation efforts in cluster coordination. 

A summary of the most important actions according to the participants were: 

• Stop doing: Introducing new coordination models/structures without considering what already exists; using complex tools and acronyms; and having coordination meetings to only provide information rather than them being strategic.
• Start doing: Mapping of NNGOs and CSOs, and knowing existing forums, initiatives and development actors before the crisis happens. 
• Continue doing: Supporting and strengthen existing governmental, national and sub-national systems and to map services provided by national partners.  Also continue participation of local actors in clusters, Strategic Advisory Groups (SAGs) etc.
   

To read more about Child Protection AoR's efforts to improve localisation, please click here.