Attachments
Background & Scope
All responders working in Sudan in an emergency or protracted refugee response are accountable to persons of concern. Accountability to affected populations (AAP) can be understood as 'an active commitment by humanitarian actors and organizations to use power responsibly by taking account of, giving account to, and being held to account by the people they seek to assist'(1). It refers to the responsible use of power in humanitarian action, combined with effective and quality programming that recognizes the dignity, capacity, and abilities of communities of concern.
Sexual exploitation by aid workers and other refugees has sometimes been associated with the provision of humanitarian assistance. Women, girls and boys in particular have been exploited by aid workers and by other refugees who could provide or withhold food, shelter, education or medical care. Since the relationship between humanitarian workers and persons of concern is inherently unequal in terms of power relationships and levels of authority, operational partners must be vigilant and rigorously avoid any action that would suggest or imply that a sexual act might be a condition for protection and material assistance or services.
The Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Working Group has been established to support the creation of- and sustain an environment that prevents sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of refugees and other persons of concern in Sudan. The Working Group aims to ensure that inter-agency mechanisms are in place that prevent and sanction exploitation or abuse by aid workers at any point during the refugee response in Sudan, and will work in parallel with Refugee Consultation Forum (RCF) structures and mechanisms to ensure that the needs of refugees and asylum seekers both inform and support overall humanitarian response in the state.
1 Inter-agency Standing Committee – Collective Accountability to Affected People: https://interagencystandingcommittee.org/system/files/p2p-support-collective-aap-note.pdf