Publications

The impacts of climate challenges are not inevitable. This report of the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance with main partners Concern Worldwide and Mercy Corps deals with the financing of two existing measures – climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction – to better manage and reduce the risk of climate-related disasters and enable people to cope with multiple shocks and stresses.

This briefing note from WeWord-GVC presents the state of the humanitarian-development-peace Nexus, how the organization envisions and puts into practice its commitment to the Nexus and what impact the COVID-19 pandemic has on the reform agenda going forward. It complements the soon-to-be published WeWorld-GVC Nexus Principles, affirming what the organization believes are the most crucial elements of the Nexus that need incorporating into the operational practices of the organization.

In this edition of the VOICE out loud, VOICE members explore the effects of the climate crisis on humanitarian action and share how humanitarian NGOs are working to address them.

COOPI launched a “Food security and livelihood assessment” activity that will be carried out in 9 countries: Democratic Republic of Congo (RD Congo), Niger, Mali, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Iraq, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala over a period of 3 months. By doing so, COOPI wants to better understand the implications of the COVID-19 crisis on the food security and livelihood of the communities it is working with, in order to be able to shape up interventions to support those communities to maintain their livelihoods whilst contributing to their recovery and longer-term economic development.

Joint Statement from NGO Networks (SCHR, VOICE, ICVA and InterAction) following the 2020 Annual Grand Bargain Meeting.

This brief by the European Think Tanks Group (ETTG) analyses current issues in the EU’s humanitarian aid and makes recommendations for responding to the challenges ahead. Specifically, it addresses the tensions between the Commission’s ambition to be a geopolitical actor and to better respond to multidimensional crises through a ‘nexus approach’ and the strong needs-based humanitarian assistance the EU provides. The analysis is based on a structured review of academic and policy sources, complemented by interviews with Brussels-based humanitarian aid policymakers.

VOICE President letter on the Humanitarian Aid in the next Multiannual Financial Framework and Next Generation EU fund to Presidents of European Council, Commission and Council of the European Union.

This new report from Save the Children warns of ‘unprecedented global education emergency’. Deep budget cuts to education and rising poverty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic could force at least 9.7 million children out of school forever by the end of this year, with millions more falling behind in learning, Save the Children warns this new report.

Delivering a principled humanitarian response in Syria from Damascus is a continuous challenge. There are numerous barriers to engaging with and responding to the needs of conflict-affected Syrians. This paper explores the lessons learned by the Norwegian Refugee Council and Oxfam in more than ten years of combined operational experience from Damascus which can inform and improve the overall aid response in Syria.

ACAPS Humanitarian Access Overview provides a snapshot of the most challenging contexts worldwide. This report centers upon countries in which ACAPS had identified humanitarian crises. The analysis includes focused narrative and analysis on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the different aspects of humanitarian access. In response to the pandemic, governments and civilians around the world have implemented measures aiming to contain the spread of the virus. In addition to humanitarian access constraints, these measures have presented challenges both for crisis-affected populations to access aid and for humanitarian organisations to operate.

This CARE report highlights the causes and consequences of climate-induced displacement and the urgent need for a gender-transformative response. The report also highlights the urgent need for more women’s leadership and greater financial support for gender-just solutions to climate-induced displacement.

In this statement, INGOs warn that the upsurge in fighting between the Arakan Army and the Myanmar Military in northern Rakhine State has led to many people fleeing their homes while others are trapped and unable to leave. They urge all actors to protect civilians, exercise restraint and prevent the further escalation of conflict.

This new report builds on IRC’s “In Search of Work” briefing series, which reviewed progress on livelihoods commitments made by host and donor countries through the Jordan Compact from 2016 to mid 2018. This third update also includes a review of the livelihoods situation for refugees and host communities in Lebanon. The briefing draws on new evidence and emerging research findings on how refugees are managing their financial lives and analyses the impact of policy decisions made in both countries on livelihood opportunities.

This report by International Rescue Committee (IRC), with support from Development Initiatives, builds on the already strong evidence base for multi-year flexible funding. A comparative analysis of two cash programmes in Somalia funded by DFID and Sida, which draws on data collected using the Systematic Cost Analysis (SCAN) tool developed by IRC with Save the Children and Mercy Corps, provides preliminary indications of quantifiable cost efficiency gains of multi-year funding. And three case studies—two multi-sector programmes in the Central African Republic and Camroon supported through Sida’s Programme-Based Approach (PBA) and a youth livelihoods programme in Côte d’Ivoire funded by the Mastercard Foundation—reveal the qualitative benefits of multi-year, flexible financing.

A study commissioned by ACT Alliance, DanChurchAid and Norwegian Church Aid to learn more about the links between climate change and conflicts, and more importantly, to explore if efforts to adapt to the effects of climate change, can contribute to peace building. The study is based in Mali and Somalia, where there is a documented effect of climate change, and where people and communities have been facing violent conflicts
for many years.

This research was conducted with adolescent girls, their families and communities in the Sahel region of Burkina Faso and Mali where people struggle with a long, complex and violent crisis. Its primary focus is the rights and voices of adolescent girls.

A Study from Handicap International - Humanity & Inclusion with a collection and review of evidence aims
to illustrate how the COVID-19 crisis triggers disproportionate risks and barriers for men, women, boys and girls with disabilities
living in humanitarian settings.

The report from Welthungerhilfe stresses the need to invest more in the fight against hunger and have a Rescue Package for the poorest.

In reaction to the postponement of the Sahel donor conference, which was due to take place on 18 June, Oxfam together with Action Against Hunger, CARE International, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), and Save the Children, warned of a "hunger pandemic" in the Sahel on top of multiple crises, particularly as a result of COVID-19, conflict and the onset of the lean season. 24 million people (included children) are already in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.

This report compiles key learning from DCA’s and local partners’ response to the COVID-19 crisis from DCA’s operational areas. The learning was gathered at a virtual learning seminar in May 2020 on the COVID-19 response, in which five thematic areas were addressed: 1) the role of faith actors; 2) the humanitarian programming and learning from a food crisis; 3) livelihoods and value chains; 4) GBV mainstreaming response; and 5) conflict and access challenges.

Each year, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) publishes the list of the ten most neglected displacement crises in the world, to shine a spotlight on these forgotten emergencies. This is the list for 2019.

A joint letter co-signed by VOICE, CAN Europe, CONCORD, Cooperatives Europe, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, Eurodad, ENoP, EPLO and HRDN sent to EU Head of States in advance of the European Council on 19 June 2020 to present recommendations on Heading VI of the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021-2027 and the Recovery Fund 'Next Generation EU'.

CARE says that Yemen receives an unsatisfactory 1.35 billion USD in pledges – water, sanitation and hygiene are the highest priorities amidst COVID-19 crisis.

The report from the workshop organised by VOICE gathering NGOs, external experts, European Member States and EU institutions’ representatives to discuss the evolving approach in the EU to sanctions and restrictive measures, their impact on the delivery of humanitarian aid and how to mitigate them.