Displaying items by tag: Politics

The Middle East is an atypical context for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The increasing complexity of humanitarian action, particularly the blurring of the lines between humanitarian and military actors and the increasing use of humanitarian language to justify wars, have made it even more difficult for MSF to negotiate independent operational space. This is especially so in some countries in the Middle East. Moreover, we are unaccustomed to working in middle-income countries where addressing non-communicable diseases is the priority. Although MSF is used to responding to acute crises, the Middle East suffers mostly from the chronic consequences of conflict. In…

The London conference on Somalia should be seen as the latest episode in the international community's efforts to stabilise Somalia since the collapse of the Siad Barre regime in 1991. It comes at a time when the political community is espousing an air of optimism, pointing to perceived breakthroughs in their fight with the militant group al-Shabaab and in expanding the physical reach of the transitional federal government (TFG) in the capital Mogadishu. Yet, as the conference date approaches, the humanitarian community has less to be optimistic about. Yes, the UN has officially declared the famine over, but it points…

Forty heads of state convene in London this week for a conference on Africa’s biggest headache: Somalia. For Britain and the other countries represented at the conference, Somalia is a security problem, a ‘failed state’, a haven for terrorists and pirates, a threat to the well-being of the Global North. But the main threat that misgovernment in Somalia represents is to Somalis themselves, constantly at risk of famine and displacement. Although Britain responded generously to the famine that ravaged Somalia last year, there was no mention of the humanitarian crisis when the Prime Minister announced the conference, which is focused…

The occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) is subject to a variety of access and movement restrictions imposed by the Israeli government, the most significant of which include the blockade of Gaza and the Wall in the West Bank. These restrictions increase the impoverishment and vulnerability of Palestinians within the oPt, and directly impede humanitarian and development programmes. According to the results of a recent study by the Association of International Development Agencies (AIDA), access and movement restrictions for INGOs are serious, widespread, costly and difficult to overcome. As a result, vulnerable communities are not being reached, the quality of programming is…

Humanitarian aid in Pakistan is being held hostage to internal and external military and political objectives. This occurs through the control and blocking of humanitarian assistance by the Pakistani military, and through the use of aid by donor countries as a tool of ‘stabilisation’ in areas considered strategically important. These trends are reinforced by the approaches and policies of the aid community. The highly politicised delivery of aid is eroding the capacity of humanitarian principles to ensure a  cceptance and access.   The politics of flood relief The rhetoric accompanying the international response to Pakistan’s recent floods played heavily on…

When a disaster strikes and images of hungry and destitute women and children appear in the news, many feel compelled to help. Some of this help is in the form of cash, while others opt for in-kind donations of goods and services. In-kind donations can be valuable resources, filling a gap at a crucial time. However, inappropriate, untimely and inefficiently managed donations can hamper relief efforts by impeding the distribution of priority items. While most people have good intentions, some view disasters as opportunities to dump leftover or unwanted items regardless of whether affected populations need them. This article explores…

The use of businesses connected to armed groups and trafficking networks to transport humanitarian aid is a problem long privately acknowledged by aid workers in complex political emergencies and disaster relief operations. Until recently, it was largely seen as one of the inevitable compromises that have to be made in order to get aid through in high-risk conflict and disaster zones where few reputable commercial companies are prepared to venture. However, new draft procurement guidelines[1] published by the Humanitarian Aid department of the European Commission (ECHO) call for greater due diligence in contracting transport services. The ECHO guidelines focus particular…

What does Afghanistan tell us about the condition of the humanitarian enterprise? After 30 years of war (and counting), the situation for ordinary Afghans is bleak, the manipulation of aid to advance political aims has reached unprecedented levels and humanitarianism is in a parlous state. Many factors affect the plight of Afghan civilians and the response to the crisis in the country. Three are briefly discussed here: the extraordinarily politicised environment, the difficulty of assessing the humanitarian caseload and a divided and weak humanitarian community.   Instrumentalisation Afghanistan provides a sobering catalogue of unenviable characteristics: the world’s longest-running major armed…

In the wake of the Haiti earthquake and Pakistan floods in 2010, the need for effective NGO coordination is clearer than ever. As part of a previously planned initiative, the International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA) has carried out a review of NGO coordination in a range of humanitarian responses over the last ten years to contribute to the ongoing process of improving overall coordination. ICVA will shortly publish a series of case studies and develop basic guidelines as resources to help NGOs establish better coordination in the field. This article presents an overview of some of the general findings…

The devastation caused by unprecedented flooding in Pakistan between July and September 2010 triggered a massive humanitarian response. The government of Pakistan, international donors, UN agencies, NGOs, faith-based groups, private sector organisations and volunteers alike mobilised to assist more than 20 million people directly affected by the floods. Foreign governments stepped forward to offer cash assistance as well as in-kind aid, including military assets. On the ground, humanitarian actors were grappling with the challenge of launching an emergency response of unprecedented scale, across a huge and geographically diverse area. For the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) in Islamabad,[1]this meant making decisions…