Analyzing coordination structures for effective humanitarian relief operations

Not only do the authors in this special issue address three different problems humanitarian organizations could encounter while doing their job, they also show that each problem is characterized by a need to find balance. A balance between security and the speedy deliverance of aid; a balance between what is needed, what can be asked for and what can be processed; and a balance between humanitarian norms and values and professional conduct when facing regulations that go against the grain of humanitarian aid. Though no solution has yet been found for any of the problems, the articles show the diverse ways in which humanitarian aid workers try to find a balance. That in and by itself could be helpful for humanitarian aid workers when they discuss and decide on how to deal with these issues.

The humanitarian sector has formulated a collective strategic intent to localize. This involves delegating responsibilities and transferring capacities and resources to national and local actors. However, progress is slower than expected. Strategy execution is hard, and translating a general strategic intent to the actual way humanitarian organizations operate is not obvious. To suggest remedies for the slow progress, this paper investigates drivers and barriers for international humanitarian organizations (IHOs) to localize their logistics preparedness capacities. It is essential to understand IHOs' perspectives as they are global and powerful actors in the humanitarian sector and by far represent the largest recipients of donor funds. We focus on logistics since it constitutes key activities of strong local contextual character, such as procurement, warehousing, and transport. By interviewing practitioners from a representative set of large IHOs, and connecting the empirical insights with relevant theory, we unravel reasons that hinder localization. These include IHOs' strategic choices due to context-sensitive benefits of localization, mandated expectations on IHOs, the lack of internal drivers for IHOs to localize, and resistance to localize due to IHOs’ desire and motives for continued engagement in humanitarian aid. Based on these insights, actionable propositions are developed to help accelerate progress toward localization.

The growing number of large-scale relief operations and humanitarian aid initiatives is stretching the resources – financial, material and human – of humanitarian actors to their limits. Challenges to collaborate both within international humanitarian organizations, and among their direct and indirect supply chain partners often contribute to the inefficient use of resources, or ineffective operations. In this research, we discuss collaboration in humanitarian supply chains, and analyze causes of their dysfunctional operations. Furthermore, we develop an experiential learning approach that can sensitize humanitarian supply chain actors to causes of information distortion. The simulation approach was implemented in the field and instructional design cycles yielded insights into how staff apply their learnings under the specific conditions of humanitarian relief work.

In 2013, the United Nations called for a “Data Revolution” to advance sustainable development. “Data for Good” initiatives that have followed bring together development and humanitarian actors with technology companies. Few studies have examined the composition of Data for Good partnerships or assessed the uptake and use of the data they generate. We help fill this gap with a case study of Meta's (then Facebook) Survey on Gender Equality at Home, which reached over half a million Facebook users in more than 200 countries. The survey was developed in partnership with international development and humanitarian organizations. Our study is uniquely informed by our involvement in this partnership: we contributed subject matter expertise to the development of the survey and advised on dissemination strategies for the resulting data, which we also analyzed in our own academic work. We complement this autoethnographic perspective with insights from scholars of partnerships for development, and a practitioner framework to understand the factors connecting data to action. We find that including multiple partners can widen the scope of a project such that it gains breadth but loses depth. In addition, while it is (somewhat) possible to quantify the impact of a Data for Good partnership in terms of data use, “goodness” can also be assessed in terms of the process of producing data. Specifically, collaborations between organizations with different interests and resources may be of significant social value, particularly when they learn from one another—even if such goodness is harder to quantify.

PurposeBy drawing on commitment-trust theory, we examine the role of swift trust and distrust in supporting coopetition under conditions of uncertainty and interdependence in the setting of humanitarian disaster relief organisations.Design/methodology/approachThis paper presents findings from case studies of 18 international humanitarian relief organisations based on 48 interviews and the analysis of publicly available documents.FindingsWe find that both swift trust and swift distrust support coopetition. As coopetition is simultaneous cooperation and competition, in this study we show how swift trust and swift distrust also occur simultaneously in coopetitive contexts.Research limitations/implicationsCoopetition as a strategic choice is well-researched in the private sector, yet has received less attention in the nonprofit sector, particularly in contexts that are shaped by interdependence and uncertainty. We show the importance of swift trust and swift distrust in coopetitive relationships by drawing on commitment-trust theory.Practical implicationsIn focusing on a competitive environment in which cooperation is essential, we find limited choice of coopetitive partners. Humanitarian relief organisations must often simply work with whichever other organisations are available. We highlight how trust and distrust are not opposite ends of a spectrum and detail how both contribute to coopetitive relationships.Originality/valueOur findings contribute to commitment-trust theory by explaining the important role of distrust in forging coopetitive relationships. Furthermore, we contribute to prior work on coopetition by focusing on an uncertain and interdependent nonprofit environment.

Purpose Despite the increasing number of literature that identifies the roles of various rehabilitation professionals in disaster-related work, there is still limited evidence that examines how these professionals prepare for and function in the various phases of disasters. This study describes the roles and responsibilities practiced by Filipino occupational therapists in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. The study also describes the preparations undertaken for the therapists to assume these roles. Materials and methods A survey was conducted among licensed occupational therapists with prior experiences in disaster response. The survey consisted of 23 items - seven were related to preparedness, ten to disaster response, and six to the recovery phase. The participants were asked to indicate their degree of involvement in specific roles and responsibilities using a 5-point Likert scale. The questionnaire also explored their personal preparation for disaster-related work. Results The participants were mostly engaged in roles related to the recovery phase, followed by the response phase, and were least engaged in the preparedness phase. The roles most frequently performed include: encourage connectedness and social interactions among survivors (recovery); provide supportive mental health services to survivors and their families (response); and attend trainings in disaster response to be part of a response team (preparedness). The majority of the participants received training in mental health responses and orientation prior to deployment. They identified the need to gain additional knowledge on emergency response and the effects of human displacement in disaster situations. Conclusions Given additional training and orientation, occupational therapists are able to perform various roles and responsibilities in the different phases of disasters. They can serve as additional resources for government and non-government organizations to address the needs of vulnerable populations in disasters. The study results could inform professional organizations on how rehabilitation professionals could be further trained to address disaster-related concerns. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION With additional orientation and training, occupational therapists could serve as an important health human resource especially in providing mental health services to people with special needs in disasters. There is a need to intentionally integrate disaster preparedness in the scope of practice of rehabilitation professionals to prepare people with special needs for disasters. Additional knowledge and skills in humanitarian action need to be integrated with clinical expertise to benefit government and non-government disaster management activities.

Prelims (Foreword - Antonio Guterres, Acknowledgements) Introduction Part One: Land, conflict and humanitarian action: Exploring the nexus 1. Why humanitarian organizations need to tackle land issues Alex de Waal 2. Tackling land tenure in the emergency to development transition in post-conflict states: From restitution to reform Liz Alden Wily Part Two: Humanitarian intervention in land issues: Lessons and challenges 3. Humanitarian approaches to conflict and post-conflict legal pluralism in land tenure Jon D. Unruh 4. Land in return, reintegration and recovery processes: Some lessons from the Great Lakes region of Africa Chris Huggins 5. Leader of the pack: Who will take the lead on post-conflict HLP issues? Scott Leckie Part Three: Case studies 6. International standards, improvisation and the role of international humanitarian organizations in the return of land in post- conflict Rwanda John W. Bruce 7. Land rights in Angola: Poverty and plenty Conor Foley 8. Going home: Land, return and reintegration in Southern Sudan and the Three Areas Sara Pantuliano 9. Between war and peace: Land and humanitarian action in Colombia Samir Elhawary Part Four: Conclusions 10. Charting the way: Integrating land issues in humanitarian action Sara Pantuliano Back Matter (Index)

Obtaining reliable information for decision-making to prepare and respond to disasters is difficult. Governments and humanitarian organizations often have to plan complex disaster responses based on forecasts or without having reliable field assessments. Decision aid models can help governments and humanitarian organizations by improving their forecasts during disaster preparedness and by facilitating data collection during field assessments in disaster response. Decision aid models can also facilitate collaboration and coordination between different parties involved in disaster management. This book is an academic study of decision aid models for disaster management.

Purpose Foreign governments do not always welcome international humanitarian organizations responding to a disaster in their country. Many governments even impose restrictions on humanitarian supply chains through import barriers, travel restrictions or excessive bureaucracy. The purpose of this paper is to analyze these restrictions and try to identify the government characteristics that best explain the tendency to impose such restrictions. Design/methodology/approach Through a multiple case study among four international humanitarian organizations the authors identify and analyze the restrictions imposed on humanitarian supply chains in 143 different programs. The authors compare the average number of restrictions per country with different governmental and socio-economic situational factors. Findings The authors find that state fragility, a combination of government ineffectiveness and illegitimacy, is the characteristic that best explains the tendency of a government to impose restrictions on humanitarian supply chains. Practical implications Knowing that fragile states tend to impose a high number of restrictions helps humanitarian organizations to prepare adequately before entering a country with a fragile government. The organization can, for example, anticipate possible concerns and establish trust with the government. Commercial companies starting to do business in such country can learn from this knowledge. Originality/value Multiple studies have mentioned the strong impact of governments on humanitarian supply chains, but no paper has yet analyzed this problem in detail. The paper is the first to identify the characteristics that explain the number of restrictions governments impose on humanitarian supply chains, and what humanitarian organizations can do to address them.

This paper examines faith-based humanitarian organizations and their multiple alliances with Karen Baptist missionary networks in the context of the Karen refugee crisis. Far from being only passive recipients of humanitarian assistance, I argue that Karen people become important agents of proselytizing, using their cultural capital to reach out to the imagined community of would-be Christians. Doing so, Karen are able to expand opportunities and to link their own self and livelihood to the mission of the Christian movement. Stabilized and supported by international humanitarian aid, the Karen National Union (KNU) resistance movement exercises a form of governance in the refugee camps by controlling their internal organization in contestation with the Thai state authorities. This biased engagement places humanitarian organizations and the Baptist church in opposition to the Burmese government and thus leaves faith-based humanitarian organizations with the ethical dilemma of whether to abandon impartiality. The article makes use of Castells’ social network concept to illustrate the importance of material and non-material resources that make access to indigenous refugee networks and international humanitarian aid organizations viable for survival and reproduction in a hostile environment.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically explore the potential of outsourcing of humanitarian logistics activities to commercial logistics service providers (LSPs) throughout the different disaster phases. The authors identify incentives for initiating outsourcing of humanitarian logistics activities to commercial logistics providers, humanitarian logistics activities to be outsourced and selection criteria for partners.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on empirical data collected by interviewing 12 practitioners from commercial LSPs and 12 practitioners from humanitarian organizations (HOs). A review of related literature guided this research.FindingsThis research shows that incentives for initiating outsourcing engagements, partner selection criteria and activities to be outsourced are changing throughout the different disaster phases. A number of research propositions are presented.Research limitations/implicationsThis research constitutes a first step towards the goal of a comprehensive analysis of humanitarian logistics outsourcing throughout the different disaster phases. The authors collected data from practitioners and large organizations based mainly in Europe and the USA. Hence, insights from national and local organizations of other parts of the world are missing.Practical implicationsThis research provides a deeper understanding of outsourcing of humanitarian logistics activities. As the main implication for practice, the research suggests a strategic use of outsourcing during the three disaster phases. The authors acknowledge that business objectives, risks, stakeholder agendas and requirements, as well as costs play a vital and changing role for outsourcing decision-making during the three disaster stages. The managerial implications arising from the research can provide support to commercial LSPs and HOs that initiate or develop strategic outsourcing relationships.Originality/valueThis study covers the gap in the humanitarian literature related to context-specific factors of outsourcing in humanitarian logistics by empirically investigating the phenomenon. This is one of the first studies that empirically investigate the potential of outsourcing of humanitarian logistics activities throughout the disaster phases.

BackgroundHumanitarian crises, such as armed conflict, forced displacement, natural disasters, and major disease outbreaks, take a staggering toll on human health, especially in low-resource settings. Yet there is a dearth of robust evidence to inform the governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other humanitarian organizations on how to best respond to them. The Fogarty International Center of the U.S. National Institutes of Health commissioned a collection of Research in Practice articles that highlights the experiences of scientists conducting research in the context of humanitarian crises. Unlike traditional research papers, the case analyses in this collection go beyond what research was completed and focus on why the research was important and how it was conducted in these extremely challenging settings.DiscussionThe papers selected for this collection span 27 countries, cover a broad range of humanitarian crises, and discuss a wide variety of disease and health risk factors. Of the 23 papers in the collection, 17 include an author from the affected country and five papers were authored by humanitarian NGOs. Throughout the collection, 43% of the authors were from low- and middle-income countries.Across the collection, some general themes emerged that are broadly applicable. Importantly, there is a clear need for more, high-quality research to address evidence gaps. Community engagement, already a key element to global health research, was highlighted as especially important for research involving populations dealing with severe trauma and disruption. Partnership with humanitarian actors, including local governments, local and international NGOs, and UN agencies, was found to be a critical strategy as well.ConclusionA variety of audiences will find this collection useful. Global health educators can utilize papers to facilitate discussion around public health practice and equitable partnerships, among other topics. Humanitarian response organizations may use the collection to consider how research may inform and improve their work. Global health researchers, funders, and other stakeholders may use the collection to stimulate dialogue around key scientific research questions and better appreciate the importance of conducting research in humanitarian crises in the context of achieving broader global health goals.

Humanitarian access is an essential factor in humanitarian action in situations of armed conflict since it is impossible to provide direct humanitarian assistance without it. Unfortunately, the imposition of prohibitions and barriers to humanitarian aid by the warring parties has become a trend in modern armed conflicts worldwide, particularly in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. The right of access to victims of armed conflict is a fundamental element of humanitarian action since it allows humanitarian aid organizations to make independent needs assessments, ensure their effectiveness and monitor the fair distribution of such aid. However, gaining and maintaining access to the population to provide humanitarian assistance is difficult for humanitarian organizations. The provision of such access may be limited by the very fact of armed conflict and the fact that humanitarian access is usually considered ad hoc, so there are often no established methods or rules for granting such access. Although humanitarian access is not a new issue in international law, there are several challenges today in ensuring and maintaining such access in situations of armed conflict, including the understanding of the term "humanitarian access," the rights and responsibilities of participants in armed conflict, obligations, and restrictions on humanitarian organizations themselves, criteria for granting humanitarian access in various situations, etc. This article will consider the most common problems in gaining humanitarian access during armed conflicts and suggest possible ways to solve them.

In February 2000, Mozambique suffered its worst flooding in almost 50 years: 699 people died and hundreds of thousands were displaced. Over 49 countries and 30 international non-governmental organisations provided humanitarian assistance. Coordination of disaster assistance is critical for effective humanitarian aid operations, but limited attention has been directed toward evaluating the system-wide structure of inter-organisational coordination during humanitarian operations. Network analysis methods were used to examine the structure of inter-organisational relations among 65 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in the flood operations in Mozambique. Centrality scores were used to estimate NGO-specific potential for aid coordination and tested against NGO beneficiary numbers. The average number of relief- and recovery-period beneficiaries was significantly greater for NGOs with high relative to low centrality scores (p < 0.05). This report addresses the significance of these findings in the context of the Mozambican 2000 floods and the type of data required to evaluate system-wide coordination.

Background: Given the worldwide increase of chronic diseases, expatriate health workers on assignment with humanitarian emergency organisations can face more clinical situations that require advanced pain control or palliative care. Multiple reasons can prevent the provision of this care. Aim: To better know how health workers react to and cope with this dilemma. Design: A qualitative interview study using inductive thematic analysis was performed. Setting/participants: A total of 15 expatriate health workers took part in individual in-depth interviews after their assignment with the organisation ‘Médecins sans Frontières’. Results: Clinical situations requiring advanced pain control or palliative care do occur during assignments. Expatriate health workers have different levels of knowledge of pain control and palliative care. Lacking opioids were a main reason for inadequate pain control. The expatriates felt helpless, distressed and frustrated in such situations. Peer support was sometimes helpful. Guidelines for palliative care in emergency settings would have been useful. Conclusion: Pain control and palliative care needs occur during clinical practice in emergency humanitarian assistance. Training for expatriate health workers should be improved. Humanitarian organisations should strengthen their capacity to provide pain control and palliative care by developing and applying adapted guidelines.