A practical handbook. This Health Cluster Guide (2nd edition, 2020) provides practical advice on how WHO, Health Cluster Coordinators and partners can work together during a humanitarian crisis to achieve the aims of reducing avoidable mortality, morbidity and disability, and restoring the delivery ...of and equitable access to preventive and curative health care.
It highlights key principles of humanitarian health action and how coordination and joint efforts among health and other sector actors can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of health interventions and promote better health outcomes. It draws on Inter-Agency Standing Committee and other expert guidance and includes lessons from field experience in acute and protracted crises.
The coordination principles and practice presented in Health Cluster Guide are equally valid for coordinators and members of health sector groups that seek to achieve effective health action in countries where the cluster approach has not been formally adopted.
more
The report reveals weak national mental health services overburdened by the demands placed on them by the Syria crisis. Health facilities which previously provided integrated mental health services in Syria have themselves become casualties of war, with most either destroyed, damaged or not function...ing. The shortage of trained mental health care providers is viewed as critical, both in Syria and in the neighboring countries where refugees now reside. Strengthening and expanding these services is crucial for Syria’s longer term recovery because the need for treatment will last for years after the war ends.
more
We live in a world in which 28 million children have been driven from their
homes as a result of conflict, persecution and insecurity¹. If current trends
continue, more than 63 million children could be forced to flee by 2025², of
which over 25 million will cross borders and become refugees. At... least
300,000 of these child refugees will end up alone, separated from their
families³. Without a step-change in the provision of education for refugee
children, at least 12 million of them will be out of school by 2025⁴.
more
The major issue was a lack of flexibility and unpredictable funding for activities. The Office continued to work closely with partners, especially UN Agencies and concluded jointly the UNDAP 2018-2023. The work was accomplished by a dedicated staff.
They improved health of communities with effectiv...eness and commitment.
more
The magnitude and complexity of these mental health conditions caused by prolonged and extensive trauma requires a diagnosis fitting the unique context of the Syrian conflict. Over half a million people have been killed since the beginning of the conflict in 2011, and more than 6.4 million are inter...nally displaced with over 5 million living as refugees. SAMS documents the multi-dimensional nature of mental health disorders afflicting Syrians, including accounts of refugee experiences from Eastern Ghouta, Idlib, and beyond. This qualitative report seeks to raise awareness about increasing mental health needs, while sharing personal stories of those who have been affected by the trauma of the conflict.
more
VADEMECUM | This Vademecum is intended to provide a benchmark for aid workers—whether working in the field or at a strategic level—in particular concerning the formulation and implementation of programmes of prevention or response to humanitarian crises. It is not solely a theoretical document b...ecause, in addition to guiding principles, it also provides concrete examples of how to ensure protection of the rights of people with disabilities, including in terms of humanitarian aid. This Vademecum has been drafted in adherence to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which has been in force since 2006 and which reaffirms the importance of protecting the safety of people with disabilities in dangerous situations.
more
By 2100, new UN figures show that 4 of today’s 10 most populous nations will be replaced by African countries.
Brazil, Bangladesh, Russia and Mexico—where populations are projected to stagnate or decline—will drop out. In their place: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania and E...gypt. All 4 are projected to more double in population.
Top 10 rankings in population growth by 2100 include only 2 non-African nations—Pakistan and the US.
c1China will shrink by 374 million fewer people—more than the entire US population.
more
The Indonesian government has reformed its laws, policies, and institutions to better manage disaster risk since the significant 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. The Government of Indonesia now has contingency plans for every disaster-prone city which identifies its vulnerabilities, outlines the relief re...sponse, and builds overall preparedness. In 2007, the government introduced a disaster management bill that incorporated disaster management prevention into disaster management response. In 2008, Indonesia created the National Disaster Management Agency (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana, BNPB). The new shift led to the strengthening of the country’s disaster management agency, and the addition of district branches and representatives. Despite the progress made, more work is needed at the local level as well as integration of disaster risk reduction in government departments.11 Under Indonesia’s 2007 Disaster Management law, provincial and district administrations are mandated to head disaster management during a crisis.
more
The figures and findings reflected in the 2019 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) represent the independent analysis
of the United Nations (UN) and its humanitarian partners based on information available to them. While the HNO aims
to provide consolidated humanitarian analysis and data to help inf...orm joint strategic humanitarian planning, many of
the figures provided throughout the document are estimates based on sometimes incomplete and partial data sets using
the methodologies for collection that were available at the time. The Government of Syria has expressed its reservations
over the data sources and methodology of assessments used to inform the HNO, as well as on a number of HNO findings.
more
Operational guidance for managing programme quality.
These guidelines are about implementing the programme-quality standards of the Core Humanitarian Standard in limited access humanitarian response. They have been developed using approaches and tools tested by Oxfam, other INGOs and the UN in Afgh...anistan, DRC, Iraq, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. The guidelines are an operational resource to help programme designers and decision makers deliver ‘good enough’ programme quality in limited access humanitarian response.
more
How should humanitarian organisations prepare and respond to COVID-19 in humanitarian settings in low- and middle-income countries?
This Rapid Learning Review outlines 14 actions, insights and ideas for humanitarian actors to consider in their COVID-19 responses. It summarises and synthesises the... best available knowledge and guidance for developing a health response to COVID-19 in low- and middle-income settings as at April 2020
The paper, supported by the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock, will be updated throughout 2020 to reflect emerging knowledge and evidence on the most effective approaches to respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
more
Objectifs 2020 : des avancées disparates. Le rapport de l’ONUSIDA sur l’épidémie mondiale de sida fait état d’un échec accentué par la COVID-19. Depuis 2015, 3,5 millions d’infections au VIH et 820 000 morts supplémentaires liés au sida sont imputables à des objectifs non atteints. ...Elles auraient été évitées si les objectifs 2020 avaient été réalisés. La riposte pourrait également revenir dix ans en arrière au moins, si la pandémie de COVID-19 interrompt gravement les services de lutte contre le VIH.
more
WHO published the first COVID-19 Strategic Response and Preparedness Plan (SPRP) on 3 February, 2020. This report highlights the main points of progress that were made up to 30 June 2020 under the three objectives outlined in the SPRP: scaling up international coordination and support; scaling up co...untry preparedness and response by pillar; and accelerating research and innovation. The report also discusses some of the key challenges faced so far, and provides an update on the resource requirements for the next phase of WHO’s response as part of an unprecedented whole-of-UN approach to the pandemic.
more
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and partners from 27 humanitarian and development organisations and governments are appealing for USD 84 million to provide life-saving assistance to hundreds of thousands of African migrants and host community members affected by COVID-19 in the Ho...rn of Africa and Yemen. The many partners include the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Save the Children, among others.
more
An evidence-informed approach for non-formal, out-of-school CSE programmes that aims to reach young people from left-behind populations
This guidance is intended to assist anyone designing and/or implementing CSE in out-of-school settings, especially in low- and middle-income countries. This includ...es international and national civil-society organizations, community-based organizations, government departments, UN agencies, health authorities, non-formal education authorities and youth development authorities. It is also intended for anyone else involved in the design, delivery and evaluation of sexuality education programmes out of school, especially those working with the specific groups of young people addressed in the guidance.
more
After ten years of war, the vast majority of Syria’s children cannot imagine a future in their country, according to a new report by Save the Children. On average, 86% of Syrian refugee children surveyed in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and the Netherlands said they would not want to return to their cou...ntry of origin. Of children displaced inside Syria, one in three would rather be living in another country. Children who fled their homes are struggling to feel safe where they are now, as around two in five children of those surveyed by Save the Children said they face discrimination and a lack of education. Many feel they have no say over their future.
more
The Sphere Handbook "Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response" is now available in Haitian Creole.
This translation has been coordinated by Oxfam Canada and funded by the following members of the Policy Action Group on Emergency Response (PAGER Canada): World Vision Canada,... Plan Canada, Oxfam Quebec, Development and Peace, CARE Canada, Canadian Red Cross, Save the Children Canada, Christian Children's Fund of Canada, Mennonite Central Committee of Canada and Adventist Development and Relief Agency of Canada.
more
This rapid review report has identified the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) options used in emergency settings, with decentralised wastewater treatment systems (DEWATS) and mobile wastewater treatment units performing most effectively and with minimal costs. Examples are taken from refugee camps a...nd internally displaced people (IDP) settlements due to the Iraq war, the Israeli-Palestine conflict, and the civil wars in Syria and Sudan. WWTP options used in Finland, Haiti, Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, Sudan and Turkey are discussed. Lessons learned from China and suggestions for the Rohingya crisis are also included.
more
UNFPA implements programmes addressing gender-based violence (GBV) in 153 countries and territories, many of which face humanitarian emergencies. Leading resources used by GBV practitioners include the Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies Programming (the GBViE Min...imum Standards) released in 2019 and the Essential Services Package for Women and Girls Subject to Violence released in 2015. Experiences across UNFPA have shown that GBV practitioners have faced challenges in determining when and how to use these tools and how to adapt different approaches to diverse contexts.
more
As Uganda builds back from the COVID-19 shock, the Ugandan government is strengthening its commitment to a more gender-inclusive and sustainable economy. This report supports these efforts by describing the gendered impacts of COVID-19 and provides recommendations for Ugandan policy makers and World... Bank Group operations to ensure women’s participation in an inclusive and sustainable recovery. It presents gender-disaggregated data from three main sources: high-frequency phone surveys that track the impacts of the COVID-19 shock: one of Ugandan nationals conducted in June and one of refugees conducted in November 2020; interviews with 28 representatives of government institutions, development partners, and women’s organizations in Kampala and in rural areas; and a review of relevant policy and gray literature on climate change, the green economy, and women’s economic empowerment.
more