QualityandAccountability:Itisnotenoughtodothethingsright,therightthingshavetobedone

NotesfromthepaneldiscussionorganizedbyCHSAlliance,theSphereProject&GroupeURD,aneventsponsoredbySwitzerlandandDenmark

ArnoWicki,DeputyHeadofSwissHumanitarianAidandSHA,HeadofMultilateralDivision

ArnoWickiintroducedthediscussion,asking“Howcanwedotherightthingsanddothemwell?”

Thoughitseemsobviousdoingitisnottrivial,especiallyifwealsowanttoensurepeoplehaveavoice.Fromadonorperspective,thequestionis“howcanwemakethemostoutofthelimitedresourceswehave?”Well,ouropinionisthatwithstandardsandquality,wecanputpeopleatthecentrewhileatthesametimebeingmoreeffective.

StephanSchønemann,DirectorforHumanitarianAffairs,MinistryofForeignAffairsofDenmark

ThereportoftheSecretaryGeneral“OneHumanity:SharedResponsibility”highlightsthechallengesthatpoliticalactors,donors,developmentandhumanitarianorganizationsarefacingandwillhavetodealwithinthecomingyears:weallhavetodomoreandbetterwithconstrainedresources!Thiscallsforarenewedcommitmenttowardsenhancingthequality,accountabilityandeffectivenessofhumanitarianassistance.

Theprogressmadeinadvocatingforputtingpeopleatthecentreofhumanitarianactionissignificant.Yetthechallengeoftranslatingthisintomeaningfulpolicy,practice,andaconsistentlyappliedapproachtoconsultation,participation,localleadership,assessment,monitoring,andreportingbyallhumanitarianactorsremainsadeepchallenge.

Withtheattempttoraisethebarandsettingthestandard,anewqualityandaccountabilitytool-theCoreHumanitarianStandard-waslaunched1½yearsagoinCopenhagen.TheStandardplacespeopleaffectedbycrisisatthecentreofhumanitarianaction,anditsetsoutninecommitmentsthatorganisationsandindividualsinvolvedinhumanitarianresponsecanusetoimprovethequalityandeffectivenessoftheassistancetheyprovide.

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[ShowstheCHS]Thislittlebookletisthefruitofmanyyearsofhardwork-anditbringstogetherthemainelementsoftheSphereCoreStandards,theHAPstandard,theRedCrossandRedCrescentCodeofConduct,thePeopleinAidCodeofGoodPracticeandcriteriafromtheOECD’sDACandfromtheQualityCompassdevelopedbyGroupeURD.ThekeystakeholdersofthiscommonstandardareGroupeURD,SphereandCHSAlliance.

ItisworthcomplimentingtheseorganisationsandnetworksfortheiramazingeffortsinjoiningforcesandcreatingoneCoreHumanitarianStandardratherthataseriesofmany.Togethertheyarebuildingacomplementaryapproachthatcontributestoharmonisingandstrengtheningthecoherenceofstandards.Strengtheningthecoherenceofstandardsacrossdifferentsectorsofhumanitarianworkonthebasisofsharedfundamentalvalues,commonstructureandconsistentlanguageensuresgreaterownershipandenablesincreasedeffectivenessandefficiency.

WiththerecentadoptionoftheCoreHumanitarianStandardbytheGlobalClusterstocomplementexistinginternationaltechnicalstandards,andwiththesupportthiscommonstandardhasgarneredasabaselinefororganizationalaccountabilityfromNGOstoactorssuchastheEuropeanCommission,wehavearealopportunitytostrengthenaframeworkwhichputspeopleatthecenterofhumanitarianaction.

ThisopportunityhasalreadybeenusedtotranslateourcommonunderstandingofrecognizedstandardssuchasSphereandtheCHSintoinstitutionalcommitmentsandactionsatthelevelofHumanitarianResponsePlans.ThishasbeenthecaseintheresponseplansofSomalia,Afghanistan,NigerandDRCamongstothers.

Whenresponseplans,commonprioritiesandcollectivegoalsareinformedbyevidenceandanalysisagainstinternationallyrecognizedstandards–significantshifts

inpracticecanbeseen.Tomakethishappenrequiresstrongleadershipatcountrylevel.

[Historicalperspective]

Theseinitiativesillustratethatformorethan20years,thehumanitariansectorhasgraduallybeenimprovingitspracticesthroughthedevelopmentanddisseminationofamyriadofqualityandaccountabilityinitiativesandself-regulatorytools.Humanitarianorganisationshavegonethroughanenormousprofessionalizationprocess,whiletryingtoadapttovariouscodeofconducts,commonstandards,goodpractices,evaluationmechanismsandlearningnetworks.Wehaveatlargeseenagreatimprovementinthelogistical,financialandmanagerialsystemsoforganisations.Theiradministrativecontrolshavealsoincreasedinordertorespondtogrowingrequestsfromdonorsandpublicopinionabouttransparencyandaccountability.Andtheevaluationofresponseisnowwellacceptedandestablished.Thisisallgood.However,thequalityofhumanitarianaidfromtheperspectiveofbeneficiaries,localauthoritiesandmedia,isregularlyquestioned.Aseriesofchallengesarestillaheadofusandwecanaskourselvesthesequestions:

1. Howdowemaintainqualityandaccountabilitywhileadaptingresponsestonewandincreasinglycomplexandfast-changingsituations,whichatthesametimerequireustoinnovate,takerisks,andacceleratelearning?

2. Howdowemakesurethataffectedcommunitiesareputatthecenter,whichmeansinvestinginlocalcapacitiessothatinternationalactorssupportnationalmechanismsratherthanreplacethem?

3. Howdowepassfromanindividualresponsibilitytoacollectiveone,whichmeansashiftfromcoordinatinginputstoachievingoutcomestogether?

Andhowdowequicklytransitionfromshort-termcrisisassistancetosupportforcollectiveoutcomesinprotractedemergencies,whichenablerecoverywithdignity?

Thepurposeoftoday’ssideeventistoexplorehowwecanaddresssomeofthechallengesjustmentioned-andtodiscusshowqualityandaccountabilitycanincreasetheeffectivenessandefficiencyofaid.MySwisscolleagueArnoWicky,DeputyHeadofSwissHumanitarianAidandHeadofMultilateralDivision,willguideyouthroughthisafternoon’sdiscussions,whichIhopewillinspireusalltonotonlydothingsrightbuttoensurethatitistherightthingsthatweareactuallydoing!Thankyouallforlistening!

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AminaLabarakwe,Communitymember,BaringoCountyKenya

(translationintoEnglishprovidedbyRuthObwaya,ActionAidKenya)

MynameisAmina.I’mamemberofChurodivisioninBaringocountry,Kenya.

Today,I’mheretotalkaboutQualityandAccountabilityinthecontextofdisaster.

Withthedroughtthattookplacein2011,wehadchallengesaswomentowalklongdistancestofeedchildren.Therewereinadequatehealthservices,andmenwentawayinsearchofpasturesfortheirlivestock.Manyorganizationsrespondedandsupportedusatthistime.MyunderstandingofQ&Aisaprocessthroughwhichpolicymakersaccountforwhatthey’resupposedtodoorhavecommittedtodo.Inmycommunity,Iwasarepresentativeofavigilancecommittee,whichthroughitsworkwastheeyesofthecommunity.Thisisonewaywehelptoholdorganisationstoaccount.

Anotheroneisinvolvementindecisionmakingprocess.Forexample,wewereinvolvedinprocurementprocesstoawardcontracts,whichhelpedtoimprovetransparency.Accountabilityisabottomupprocess.Itneedstoinvolvecommunitymembers,becausewearekeyinrespondingtodisasters.Ihavealsolearntthatwomenleadershipiskeyinanyresponseefforts.

Mymessagetodayisthatthecurrentaccountabilitymodelwherewearemoreconcernedwiththedonorsdoesnotworkforcommunities;ratherwhatweshouldhaveisaccountabilitytowardsboththecommunityandthedonors.Thankyouforrespondingwithsolidarity.

AlejandroMaldonadoExecutivesecretary,CONRED,Guatemala

Fromthepointofviewofgovernments,lookingatstandardsisslightlydifferent.Asagovernment,webelieveintheimportanceofstandards,especially

Sphere,becauseithelpsusbettermeettheneedsofourpopulation.Itishoweveralsoimportantforaccountabilityandtransparencypurposes.Standardsareanimportanttoolinthefightagainstcorruption,whichisabigissueinCentralAmerica.

InOct.2009,theGovernmentofGuatemalacommittedinwritingtocomplywiththeSphereStandards.Weworkedtowardsthisgoalbydevelopingmanualsandprotocolstoimplementthiscommitment.Forexample,wedevelopedTermsofReferenceforprocurementactivitiesandpurchases,settingclearrulesforexampleforthebiddingprocess.Wealsoworkedwithourproviderssothattheymeetthestandardsintermsofwhattheyproduce,inordertobettermeettheneedsofendusers,dependingontheirowncontextandculture.

Standardsarealsoveryusefulinsofarastheyhelpquantifytheamountofassistancethatoughttobeprovidedinanemergency.Inrelationtothat,italsoallowsustoplanforfutureeventsanddecidewhatshouldbeputinawarehouse.Veryimportantlyaswell,standardshelptominimisethehumanfactorandsupportobjectivedecisionsvs.arbitrarilydecidingwhatgoeswhere.

Standardsalsopushustoimprove,evenwhenitmeansfightingwithourownlegislation.Wechangedourapproachintermsofwhatkindofmattresseswereprovidedtopeopleaffectedbycrisisbasedonthestandard,eventhoughitwasn’teasytoachieve.

Standardsareindispensabletoolsforabetterresponse.Theyhelptobetterprepareourresponse,allowtoreducethetimeneededtorespond,andareimportantforouraccountabilityandtransparency.

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LiseGrande,ResidentHumanitarianCoordinator,Iraq

We'dliketomakethreekeypointsabouttheaccountabilityagenda:

First,wewanttoacknowledgehowimportantthisagendaisandtocelebratethehugeprogressthathasbeenmadeinthepastseveralyearstobringmoreandmoreattentiontoourcollectiveresponsibilities.

Second,we'dliketoreflectontheconcretestepswecantakeatthegroundleveltoensurethattheaccountabilityagendaisputrightatthecentreofourcollectiveefforts.

Thirdly,we'dliketoreflectgentlyonsomeofthekeythreatstotheaccountabilityagenda.Whenwe’retoldtodomorewithless,well,that’sathreattotheaccountabilityagenda.

Whenwethinkbackonwhereweweretenyearsagointermsofaccountabilityandwherewearenow--it'sincredibletoseetheprogress.Tenyearsago,everyoneknewmoreneededtobedonetoensurewewereaccountabletothepopulationswewereserving,buttherewasdrift--somemightevencharacterizeitasoutrightavoidance.Wewouldsay--theSpherestandardsaregreatbutwedon'thaveenoughmoneytofundthem,wedon'thavetoolstoensuretheoperationalcyclehasintegrity;conditionsinthefieldaretoorestrictive,donorswon'tpay,ourcoordinationarchitectureisn'tdesignedforthis,andsoforth.When(inSudan,inthe90s)weactuallyaskedpopulationswhattheyneeded,peoplesaid“Wedon’twantplasticbuckets,wewantcash”andofcoursewewouldignorethat.Accountabilitywasrecognisedassomethingaspirationalbutthelackofanagreedapproachgaveusanalibi,allowingustoavoidreallyhavingtodoanythingseriousaboutit.

Thishasallchanged.Becauseoftheeffortsofmanyorganisationsandmembersstatesandpeople,theaccountabilityagendaismoving.OneofthebestexamplesofthisaretheninecommitmentswhichmakeuptheCoreHumanitarianStandard.Thesecommitmentsareamanifestoofhowweshouldbeworking,andit’sgreatitfeaturesintheGrandBargain.TheStandardisaveryclearstatementthathumanitariansmustseeaccountabilitytothepeopleweserveasourfundamentalresponsibility--somethingallofusareobligedtodo.TheStandardisawayofconcretisingourethicalcommitmentandputtingitliterallyatthecentreofeverythingwetrytodo.AstheBargaingainstraction,manyofuswillbeworkingtoensuringthishappens--sothatwedon’thavetolookbackin10yearssayingwetried,butunfortunatelyfailed.

OursecondpointisaboutimplementingtheCoreHumanitarianStandardintoourhumanitarianoperations--AlejandrohasspokenabouthowGovernmentsaredoingthis,Aminahasspokenabouthowcommunity-basedorganisationsaredoingthisandI'dliketoreflectonhowtheclustersystemandHumanitarianCountryTeamscandothis.

We'dliketosuggestthatthereareatleastfourwaysinwhichHumanitarianCountryTeamscantaketheCHSandreallymakeitwork.

First,wecaninsistthatallorganisationswishingtosubmitprojectstoaHumanitarianResponsePlanshowthattheyareworkingtoreachSpherestandardsandthequalitycriteriaintheCoreHumanitarianStandard.Adashboardcanbeusedtodothis.

Second,wecaninsistthatallclustersdevelopworkplansbasedontheCoreHumanitarianStandardcycleandthatallclustersareworkingtodeliverassistanceatSpherestandards.TheHCTcancollectivelyreviewtheseworkplanstoensurefullsupportforthemacrosstheoperation.

Third,wecaninsistthatonlyorganisationswhichareworkingtoreachSpherestandardsandthequalitycriteriaintheCHSareeligibletoseekfundsfromthein-countrypooledfundandfromtheCERF.

Fourth,wecaninsistthatHCTsconductbiannualstrategicreviewsoftheiroperationstomonitorcollectiveprogressagainsttheCHSandSpherestandards.Ifwedojustthesefourthings,thiswillputaccountabilityattheverycentreofourcollectiveefforts.

MakingsurethatallHumanitarianCountryTeamsdothesefourthingsrequirestwosteps:First,theIASC

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needstochangethetermsofreferenceforHumanitarianCoordinatorstoincludedirectresponsibilityforintegratingtheCoreHumanitarianStandard,andSphereStandards,intotheoperationstheypresideover.Second,theIASCneedstodoexactlythesamethingforallclusterleadsagencies.Accountabilityistooimportanttoleavetothegoodwillandgoodintentionofhumanitarianactors.It'stimetomakeaccountabilitycompulsory.

Ourthirdpointismoresensitive--it'sabouttheveryrealthreatstotheaccountabilityagendathatthecurrentfundingcrisisrepresents.IfyouallowI'dliketousetheexampleofIraq,whereIamcurrentlybasedastheHumanitarianCoordinator,tomakethispoint.

Iraqisinmanywaysakindofdonororphan.Thedonorswhoarecontributinggenerouslytootheroperationsinthemiddleeast,byandlarge,havebeenhesitanttodothesameforIraq.Therearemanyreasonsforthis--whateverthemeritsofthesereasons,intheend,therearemorethan7millionIraqiswhodesperatelyneedhelpandaren'tgettingwhattheydeservebecausethefundingisn'tthere.Lastyear,thedonorsinsistedthattheIraqicountryteamprioritisewhatwasthenaUSD2billionappeal.Weweretoldthatifwedidn't,ouroperationwouldn'tbecredible.Soweprioritised.Itwasaverydifficultprocesswhichobligedustodosomethingnoneofuswantedtodo.RatherthancalculatingthecostsofprovidingassistancetomillionsofpeopleatSpherestandards,wewereforcedtoretrenchfromthestandardsandcalculatethecostsofmuchsmalleremergencypackagesforeachcluster.Thedifferencebetweentheemergencypackagesandthestandardsrepresentanethicalgap.Weexpected,ingoodfaith,thatatleasttheemergencypackageswouldbefunded.Theyweretosomedegree;butinfact,onlypartially.Weshouldmakenomistakeaboutthis--prioritisation,thestep-childofunder-funding,isnotaneutralprocess--itforcesustostepawayfromourcommitmenttoupholdinternationalstandards.

Myownviewisthathumanitarianactiononlyreallymakessensewhenitisprincipled.Let’sbefrank.Aprincipledresponsecostsmoney.Thishastocomefromsomewhere;humanitarianassistanceistooimportanttobevoluntary.Weneedtoconsideralloptionsincludingassessedcontributionsfrommemberstatesorfromtaxesimposedbymemberstatesonthesaleofgunsormaybeevencigarettes.Aprincipledapproachmeansweneedtoassessneedscollectively,onthebasisofanagreedmethodology,thencalculatethecostsofmeetingtheseneedsatSpherestandardsandusethe

CoreHumanitarianStandardtoensureweareaccountabletopopulations.Anyotherapproach,honestly,isn'treallyethical.

FrançoisGrünewald,ExecutiveDirector,GroupeURD,France

Theroadtothissideeventwasabumpyone.Therehasbeenmuchdebateovernearly20yearstogettotheCoreHumanitarianStandard.Ibelievecontextiseverything.Sohowcanwecapturecomplexitythroughstandards,orensureouractionsaccountforcontextsthatchangefromonedaytotheother’Howwillthingsthatarevalidtodaystillberelevantin5years.Justthinkabouttherathersuddenriseofcashor3Dprinting?

ThegoodthingabouttheCoreHumanitarianStandardisthatisisnotatechnicalsolution,it’saboutaskingquestions.AtGroupeURD,welikebeingconfrontationalandasking(theright)questions.Attheendoftheday,weneedtoavoidjustcomingwitharecipebookandusingstandardsassuch.Accountingforcontextisnotaneasytaskanditrequiresmorethanabook.Itrequiresengagementwithlocalactorsifyoudon’twanttoendupdoingbythebookthingsthataretotallystupid.

EvenattheICRC,doctrineisrevisited.Revisitingourstandardsiswhatweshoulduseevaluationsfor.Wealsoneedtoacknowledgethatsometimes,wedon’tcomplywithstandardsbecauseofstaffingorsecurityissues.Weneedtoknowwhywecan’tmeetthestandardtofigureouthowtoimprove,andasthemigrantcrisisisshowingus,weneedtobeagiletoadapttoquicklychangingsituations.That’swhyweneedtokeepaskingquestionssuchasthoseintheCoreHumanitarianStandard.