Guidance and Toolbox for the Basic Needs Analysis - Version 2 (unedited), October 2017

The Basic Needs Analysis (BNA) is a multi-sector needs analysis approach that can be applied in both sudden onset and protracted emergencies. The methodology comprises the Guidance (this document) presenting the conceptual BNA framework and related processes, and a Toolbox, which includes tools, templates, training materials, and examples drawn from its first pilot, in Borno State(Nigeria).

The BNA is conceived to go hand in hand with the Facilitator’s Guide for the Response Options Analysis and Planning (a separate document), as it is part of a broader response planning process (see The BNA within the ). It shall be carried out with other assessments on the operational environment and would not add any value if undertaken in isolation.

The BNA was inspired by and is complementary to the Operational Guidance and Toolkit for Multipurpose Cash Grants released in 2015. However, since the BNA gives way to the selection of a broader range of response modalities than only the cash-based ones, its application is wider than MPG programmes. Supposedly, the selection of MPG as a response modality would be the result of an evidence-based response planning process, that has been informed by needs and operational environment assessments.

The approach took inspiration from ECHO’s Basic Needs Framework for Integrated Response.