VOICE Out Loud 41 : What Must Not be Lost: Protecting People-Centered Humanitarian Action
We are pleased to share the 41st edition of the VOICE Out Loud!
Over the past year and a half, funding cuts, the Humanitarian Reset, renewed efforts on localisation and pressure for greater efficiency have reshaped how humanitarian organisations operate and how they make difficult choices about where and how to respond.
As humanitarian actors adapt to this increasingly constrained financial and political landscape, there is a risk that responses become narrower, with longer-term needs and essential elements of quality humanitarian action receiving less attention. This raises an increasingly urgent question: what must not be lost? This question lies at the heart of our newest edition of VOICE Out Loud.
In this issue, VOICE members CBM, Educo, Médecins du Monde, War Child and World Vision explore why essential areas such as disability inclusion, education, sexual and reproductive health and rights, mental health and psychosocial support, and child protection must remain at the heart of principled humanitarian action. People affected by crises do not experience their needs in separate categories or “priorities”. They need dignity, protection, agency and the opportunity to recover and continue with their lives.
The issue also features a closer look at ADRA’s response in Venezuela following a devastating earthquake, as well as an interview with Julia Steets, Director at the Global Public Policy Institute who reflects on the current transformation of the humanitarian system, what the sector can learn from the evidence on what works, and how reform can be pursued in a context of constrained resources.
We would like to thank all colleagues from our member organisations who contributed to this important edition Their contributions offer diverse perspectives on how the humanitarian sector is changing, and on the importance of maintaining people-centred approaches, working in partnership with local and national organisations.
