Attachments
Report Calls for Local Actors to have Greater Say in Humanitarian Efforts
A Global Network of Southern NGOs finds Widespread Support, reveals Report
Nairobi, May 28, 2015 – A new report just launched by Adeso reveals an escalating sense of frustration on the part of Southern Non-Government-Organizations (SNGOs), who - despite playing a vital role in responding to many emergencies - still find themselves with little control over how humanitarian, recovery, and resilience efforts are managed in their countries and regions.
The Demand for Feasibility and Scope of a Global Network of Southern NGOs in Disaster Resilience, Response and Recovery Report, finds, that despite numerous evaluations recommending the enhancement of national ownership of the humanitarian system in order to make disaster and recovery responses more effective, change in the status of SNGOs - while underway - has been slow.
The report finds that there is strong support for a global network of SNGOs that would help strengthen and focus capacity building efforts, enable mutual learning, advance advocacy and deepen the evidence base on Southern engagement.
Adeso Executive Director, Degan Ali said, “SNGOs play a vital role in providing the first line of response in emergencies, and are often the only means of reaching populations where access is constrained by logistical and sometimes security issues. We see this time again, and most recently in Nepal.”
“Yet according to the 2014 Global Humanitarian Assistance Report, between 2009 and 2013 only 1.6% of all humanitarian assistance was directed to national NGOs, and 0.7% to local NGOs, severely constraining the ability of SNGOs to respond effectively to emergencies, as well as build local resilience to disasters over the longer-term.”
“A global network of SNGOs could contribute to improved capacity strengthening efforts, providing a valuable means by which to engage a broader constituency of actors in humanitarian, recovery and resilience efforts, and providing a unique platform that is ‘for SNGOs, run by SNGOs’,” she concluded.
The report warns that with the escalating threat of climate change, as well as rapid urbanization, the number and complexity of disasters is on the rise making the capacitation of local and national actors all the more critical if the formal sector is going to be able to cope with a rapidly growing humanitarian caseload.
Please download full report here: http://adesoafrica.org/publications/the-demand-for-feasibility-and-scope-of-a-global-network-of-southern-ngos
Interviews: To interview Degan Ali, Adeso Executive Director, or Report Author Ben Ramalingam, please contact nbrannigan@adesoafrica.org or call +254 717733348
Note to the editors:
The Network will bring together leaders from various SNGOs and would focus on achieving the following:
- Enhanced policy-level and operational collaboration between SNGOs, including networking and communication activities.
- Securing predictable and sustainable capacity development resources for members.
- Playing a representative role in humanitarian advocacy and policy debates, on part with INGOs and UN agencies.
- Strengthening the contribution of SNGOs to research and the humanitarian evidence-base.
- Managing a pooled funding mechanism to provide members with a rapid response fund and help them establish a track record of grant management and implementation.
Adeso is an African founded and led humanitarian and development organization based in Nairobi, Kenya and with operations in Kenya, South Sudan and Somalia. We work to prevent, manage, and overcome situations that threaten the environmental, social, and financial well being of African communities. For more information visit www.adesoafrica.org.