Policy Brief: Towards Effective Food Security Responses in Crisis Situations

Humanitarian reform is an issue at the centre of the UN policy agenda; Donors and international agencies are working together to improve the predictability, timeliness and effectiveness of humanitarian response through a range of measures including the Good Humanitarian Donorship Initiative; the CAP Needs Analysis Framework; the Cluster Leadership Approach and the newly upgraded Central Emergency Response Fund. In this rapidly evolving scenario, how can a food security perspective contribute to improved humanitarian response?

The FAO, for example, is developing an emergency response framework which identifies immediate food security priorities and measures for improving the productivity and resilience of food systems in the medium and long term. The framework recognizes that persistent complex and protracted food emergencies call for diversified response options. These include social protection, livelihood restoration, and improving the resilience of food systems.