(Extract)
- Our year (GRI 1.1)
Yet again, over the past year there have been complex humanitarian emergencies occurring on an unimaginable scale. Oxfam’s emergency response to the January earthquake in Haiti was still underway when huge flooding hit Pakistan in August 2010 affecting an overwhelming 20 million people.
Oxfam has responded to this and numerous other disasters over the last year. Emergency work highlights the fact that the poorest people are the most vulnerable and the impacts of the global economic crisis and climate change hit those in poverty hardest. Despite this, people living in poverty or in vulnerable situations consistently show huge determination in wanting to change their own futures and to create solutions themselves. Oxfam enables people and communities to do this.
The revolutionary wave of protests across the Middle East and North Africa, known as the ‘Arab Spring’, shows how social media has given a new voice to people who can now communicate, demand change, organize and raise awareness in ways never seen before. A number of Oxfam partners in Egypt are playing important roles in supporting these changes. The ‘Arab Spring’ revolutions underline that the world is changing fast and Oxfam needs to change with it.
Oxfam continues to receive strong support in 2010-2011, but the global financial situation has had an impact on fundraising in some countries. This means we have to work harder than ever to make sure that people living in poverty do not suffer as a consequence of a financial crisis created by the rich countries. We are deeply appreciative that so many supporters understand this and continue to give generously.
In 2011, the Confederation welcomed Oxfam India as a full affiliate. In addition, a local Brazilian organization – Vitae Civilis – was invited to the planning phase of becoming an observer of the Confederation, which is the route to full membership. We continue to increase the impact and efficiency of country programs through the implementation of the Single Management Structure (SMS) process. SMS means reducing the number of affiliates working in countries, developing a single strategy for each country, with shared services, one brand and one voice. By the end of April 2011, the first three countries had implemented SMS. By December 2011, it is intended that 16 countries will have ‘gone live’. It will take time to implement the strategy worldwide, and implementation is likely to continue until the end of 2013. This is a challenging and complex change, which is exciting for us as new possibilities emerge. (NGO6, GRI 2.9)
In the current financial climate there are increasing questions on the effectiveness of development and aid. As a member of the International Non Governmental Organization (INGO) Accountability Charter, we are actively involved in developing accountability standards within the sector. In our efforts to improve our own transparency and accountability to donors, supporters, partners, allies and the communities we work with, our Annual Report this year, for the first time, incorporates our INGO Accountability Charter Report. We are also addressing sustainability as part of a wider push on standards and accountability.
As an international organization, we face significant challenges in managing the cost of travel and communications, and challenges in managing diversity and human resource practices across multiple cultures. Our aim is to become a truly global organization, reflecting a much broader spectrum of people, cultures and interests. The vehicle for this change is SMS, which is bringing together our country programs to a more coherent whole. We are actively promoting video conferencing and electronic communications to reduce our carbon footprint, and we have produced our second internal report on the Confederation’s carbon footprint. On the social dimension we are also thinking more about how we can operate more as a network rather than as a classical management pyramid. Looking forward, by 2050 the ten largest economies of the world will include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Mexico and Indonesia. These countries will also be increasingly important on issues such as climate change, food security and global inequality. To be relevant in the 21st Century, Oxfam needs a presence and links with allies and civil society in these emerging economies. To achieve that, we are increasing our campaigning in these countries. (NGO5)
We would like to thank our partners and allies, sponsors and donors, and staff and volunteers, whose support and work enables us to make a real difference in reducing poverty worldwide.
Keith Johnston
Chair
Oxfam International
Jeremy Hobbs
Executive Director
Oxfam International