Accountabiity to affected people

1. Accountability to affected people(AAP) Abraham Lebeza Senior Roving MEAL Officer May 11, 2025

2. Accountability to affected people Outline  History of accountability in Chronology  What are the grounds of accountability  Accountability to the affected people  What are the three pillars  What are other similar terminologies applied  CHS nine commitments  CHS in the humanitarian program cycle

3. Accountability to affected people What is accountability to the affected people (Accountability in general)

4. Accountability to affected people Here are the main points again: 1. 'Accountability to affected people' is:... The process of using power responsibly by taking account of, giving account to, and being held accountable by the people we seek to assist.

5. Accountability to affected people 2. The three considerations at the heart of our commitment to accountability are:  What do we need to take account of?  What do we need to give account to affected people on?  What are we to be held accountable for? By asking yourself those three questions in any given situation you should be able to identify steps that can be taken to improve accountability.

6. Accountability to affected people Taking account of, giving account to and being held accountable by affected people is important because a) it ensures the right to life with dignity, the right to receive humanitarian assistance and the right to protection and security b) it improves the humanitarian action and reduces the risks of fraud and corruption. performance of

7. Accountability to affected people Why is accountability important?  Ethical reasons  Supports do-not harm principles  Practical reasons (reinforces other aspects of the humanitarian support)

8. Accountability to affected people Ethical reasons Accountability approach. It recognizes and supports: the right to life with dignity. the right to receive humanitarian assistance. the right to protection and security. supports a rights-based

9. Accountability to affected people Supports the ‘do no harm’ principle For example: The transfer of resources to minimize harm and promote positive effects. Promoting a positive economy – not undermining existing markets and livelihoods. Promoting positive intergroup relationships. Meeting needs – ensuring that the response meets what the affected people feel are their needs, not what others may feel are their needs. Ensuring humanitarian action promotes a positive message.

10. Accountability to affected people Practical reasons Mainstreaming of accountability… improves programme relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and impact. In other words, it improves overall performance. Improves quality of services by ensuring that the response meets what the affected people feel are their needs, not what others may feel are their needs. protects against corruption. improves security, by improving relationships between humanitarians and those affected, and helping to ensure humanitarians are accepted within the communities where they are working. These are all things for which we are accountable – if we fail, it is up to us to explain to those affected why we failed and what we will do to succeed next time.

11. Accountability to affected people 1997 In response to genocide in Rwanda, an unprecedented multinational, multi-donor evaluation was launched: the Joint Evaluation of Emergency Assistance to Rwanda (JEEAR). The JEEAR project consisted of four separate studies, of which the third and largest was specifically dedicated to the humanitarian response to the genocide. The JEEAR recommendations are widely regarded as catalysing the development of some of today's key humanitarian quality and accountability initiatives, including the Sphere Project and, indirectly, the Core Humanitarian Standard, People in Aid and HAP International, which merged to form the CHS Alliance and ALNAP (the Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action).

12. Accountability to affected people Chronology humanitarian sector of accountability in the

13. Accountability to affected people 1997 In response to genocide in Rwanda, an unprecedented multinational, multi-donor evaluation was launched: the Joint Evaluation of Emergency Assistance to Rwanda (JEEAR). The JEEAR project consisted of four separate studies, of which the third and largest was specifically dedicated to the humanitarian response to the genocide.

14. Accountability to affected people The regarded as catalyzing the development of some of today's key humanitarian quality and accountability initiatives, including the Sphere Project and, indirectly, the Core Humanitarian Standard, People in Aid and HAP International, which merged to form the CHS Alliance and ALNAP (the Active Learning Network for Accountability and Humanitarian Action). JEEAR recommendations are widely Performance in

15. Accountability to affected people 2000 Publication of the first edition of the Sphere Handbook in 2000. Sphere is one of the first of what are now known as the quality and accountability (Q&A) initiatives. accountability to the affected populations, through engagement in all the phases of humanitarian response, lies at the heart of Sphere’s philosophy.

16. Accountability to affected people 2003 Establishment Accountability Partnership (HAP) International: a multi-agency initiative working to improve the accountability of humanitarian action to people affected by disasters and other crises. of the Humanitarian

17. Accountability to affected people 2003 Establishment Accountability Partnership (HAP) International: a multi-agency initiative working to improve the accountability of humanitarian action to people affected by disasters and other crises. of the Humanitarian

18. Accountability to affected people 2004 Evaluations of responses to the Asian Tsunami again found accountability to affected populations to be lacking, without joint needs assessments, and with complications for accountability as a result of the high levels of private funding. These was an increasing realization that having many different standards was confusing, which led to the creation of the Joint Standards Initiative (JSI). The JSI - which involved HAP, Sphere and People in Aid - eventually led to the creation of the CHS Alliance and spawned the Core Humanitarian Standard.

19. Accountability to affected people 2012 Inclusion of ‘Accountability’ within the IASC’s Transformative Agenda. The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) is the primary mechanism for inter-agency coordination of humanitarian assistance. The transformative agenda was based on three pillars, one of which is Accountability to Affected Populations, or AAP.

20. Accountability to affected people

21. Accountability to affected people 2014 Publication of Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS). The Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability Alliance or CHS was developed by the CHS, Sphere and Groupe URD. The CHS sets out what the principles and obligations of accountability mean in practice and aims to become the key reference humanitarian response Humanitarian Charter, technical minimum standards and protection principles supporting quality and accountability in all programmes framework alongside for Sphere

22. Accountability to affected people Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) The Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) is the result of a global consultation process. The CHS: refers to how humanitarian actors should assess the needs for, design, implement and review assistance and protection. sets out Nine Commitments for organizations and individuals to improve the quality and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance and strengthen their accountability to communities and people affected by crisis. The CHS builds on and replaces the Sphere Handbook Core Standards, the 2010 HAP Standard in Accountability and Quality Management, the People in Aid Code of Good Practice in the Management and Support of Aid Personnel.

23. Accountability to affected people The CHS also includes key elements of:  the Code of Conduct for The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief.  the IASC Commitments on Accountability to Affected Populations.  the Groupe URD Quality COMPAS and the OECD DAC Criteria Development and Humanitarian Assistance. for Evaluating

24. Accountability to affected people the Code of Conduct for The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief

25. Accountability to affected people What are other related terminologies serving a similar purpose

26. Accountability to affected people 1. Complaint, mechanism (CFRM) 2. Code of conduct 3. PSEAH protocols 4. Child protection 5. Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) framework 6. Safeguarding to participants feedback and response

27. Accountability to affected people PSEAH six core principles for exercise

28. Accountability to affected people 1. Define sexual exploitation and abuse and describe and explain (understand) consequences for persons of concern, the seriousness of the problem, and write action plans for what should be done to prevent and respond to it; 2. List, describe, and explain (understand): - the principles of the Secretary-General’s Bulletin (SGB) on Special measures for protection from sexual exploitation (ST/SGB/2003/13) -zero tolerance approach, with focus on: -the prohibition of exchanging money, employment, goods 3. Explain and advise other NGO and partners, as well as persons of concern, about the complaints mechanisms and process in their operation, the process of reporting to PSEA Focal Points and sexual abuse

29. Accountability to affected people 4. Sexual relationships between humanitarian workers and beneficiaries are strongly discouraged since they are based on inherently unequal power dynamics. Such relationships undermine the credibility and integrity of humanitarian aid work. 5. Where a humanitarian worker develops concerns or suspicions regarding sexual abuse or exploitation by a fellow worker, whether in the same agency or not, he or she must report such concerns via established agency reporting mechanisms. 6. Humanitarian workers are obliged to create and maintain an environment which prevents sexual exploitation and abuse and promotes the implementation of their code of conduct.

30. Accountability to affected people Nine core commitments

31. Accountability to affected people CHS

32. Accountability to affected people Breaking down initiatives related to accountability to affected people Some of the initiatives discuss the 'what' of Accountability to affected people, and some discuss the 'how'. The what looks at what it means to run an accountable, high-quality humanitarian response. The how looks at which mechanisms and processes can be used by humanitarians to ensure their response meets the criteria for an accountable, high-quality humanitarian action. Think about initiatives you know of that are related to accountability to affected people. Are they about the what, the how, or both? We’ve given some examples below; see if you can think of others.

33. Accountability to affected people Initiative What or How? CHS What and How Sphere Humanitarian Charter, Protection Principles, technical standards and companion standards What and How IASC Commitments What and How CDAC Network (Communicating with Disaster Affected Communities) How Ground Truth How

34. Accountability to affected people Please note:  These are the key initiatives on the what and how of accountability to affected people, rather than the only ones, but don’t forget, this is a constantly changing landscape.

35. Accountability to affected people Identify opportunities within the project cycle to better take account of, give account to and be held accountable by affected people.

36. Accountability to affected people Key points: formulating a needs assessment Points to note: Humanitarian actors should reflect and learn from past experience, in order to make improvements. It is critical to ensure that the most vulnerable (geographically or socio- economically) people’s voices are heard. Affected people are entitled to receive information and should be consulted about the viability of the range of solutions. Affected people also have the right to contact humanitarian agencies about their programming and should be consulted as to the preferred way of doing this. All questions should be asked in a setting that allows people to share their views frankly and safely. Consider factors that make prevent people from speaking freely. For example, in some cultures, women may not speak in front of men; in others, no one may speak in front of persons of authority. Make sure you listen to the answers, and use them to influence programming.

37. Accountability to affected people Needs assessment and analysis – a reminder Reminder: The purpose of assessment and analysis is to understand people’s situation in order to be more responsive to them (i.e. influencing programming). This includes: their needs what makes them vulnerable what capacities they have what risks they face

38. Accountability to affected people Needs assessment and analysis – a reminder Reminder: The purpose of assessment and analysis is to understand people’s situation in order to be more responsive to them (i.e. influencing programming). This includes: their needs what makes them vulnerable what capacities they have what risks they face

39. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Explain which organisation(s) you represent, what the assessment is for, and how people are affected. Giving account Being held accountable Talk to affected women, men, boys and girls, to ensure that they too directly participate in and influence initial assessment. Taking account Ensure that the needs assessment is impartial (does not favour any particular group) and takes into account the situation of those who are disadvantaged and marginalised. Taking account Disaggregate the data you collect, so that your analysis reflects the situation of different groups: elderly, youth, men, women etc. Taking account

40. Accountability to affected people Strategic planning – practical steps The purpose of the strategic planning stage is to decide how best to address the situation and meet people’s priority needs.

41. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Use relevant technical standards to design the programme, and communicate these standards to the affected people so they can gauge to what extent your organisation is fulfilling its promises. Being held to account Allocate resources on the basis of needs, vulnerabilities, capacities and risks identified, updating them at regular intervals. Taking account Being held to account Refer unmet needs to other organisations with relevant technical expertise and mandate, or advocate for them to be addressed by another actor. Taking account Make sure any potential or actual negative effects of the assistance and protection are addressed within the programme design and strategy. Being held to account

42. Accountability to affected people Resource mobilization Key points: accountability at this stage You should continue to advocate to national and international actors/donors to make sufficient resources available. Refer to widely agreed upon quality and accountability standards as a way to emphasize the importance of meeting assessed needs, for example: The CHS Sphere minimum standards. Refer also to other standards related to living with dignity, for example those specific to older people or those living with disabilities. The community should: have access to information about the funding situation, and be involved in related decisions may be able to contribute to solutions, based on contextual knowledge. The community needs to be central to decision making, both from a rights perspective and to promote sustainability. Your organization should ensure that it ‘does no harm’ and should not encourage the community to relocate without its needs being met.

43. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Communicate resource and logistical challenges to the community as soon as they arise (not after frustration becomes difficult to manage). Giving account Ensure you know the mandate, policies and performance standards of the organisation you work for, and adhere to them. Being held to account Identify ways to minimise any negative impact on local and natural resources. Being held to account

44. Accountability to affected people Implementation Points to note Humanitarian actors should feed their learning back into their organizations and to other actors, including the government, to ensure others are able to benefit. This in turn means that affected communities are better served by future programming. Information is key to both groups. They need to be informed of what is being negotiated on their behalf. Before withdrawing, humanitarian actors should develop an exit strategy and refer unmet needs to other actors, if they are not able to address them.

45. Accountability to affected people Reminder: The purpose of this stage is to put plans into action and includes: managing resources in an efficient way to carry out the planned activities. checking with the affected community that the plan is achieving what it was intended to achieve, and what the affected community are expecting it to achieve. adapting where necessary, particularly in response to the community's changing needs. Select Continue to go on.

46. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Strive to deliver programmes according to the planned schedule and communicate/report challenges in the delivery, identifying means to mitigate any potential negative consequences if you cannot deliver as planned. Giving account Being held to account Participate in coordination bodies and share information with all stakeholders through appropriate channels. Giving account Use resources efficiently, for their intended purpose. Being held to account Involve affected people in the management and monitoring of resources. Giving account Being held to account

47. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Identify suitable ways for affected people to provide feedback on their level of satisfaction with the assistance and protection your organisation is providing, and encourage them to do so. Share monitoring information with them and invite them to participate in resolving problems and improving performance. Giving account Being held to account Establish and manage an appropriate complaints mechanism, based on the preferences of the affected people. Provide accessible information on the complaints mechanism to the community, in all appropriate languages. Ensure that this complaints mechanism makes sense alongside those of other agencies operating in the area, to prevent duplication and confusion. Being held to account

48. Accountability to affected people Evaluation and learning – a reminder Reminder: The purpose of this stage is to: understand how the project’s achievements and weaknesses affected people’s lives. capture and communicate that knowledge in a way that improves other programmes. allows the affected community to have a voice in the evaluation and learning of the programme

49. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Ensure you are informed of lessons learned in previous crises, and that you act upon them. Taking account Carry out monitoring and reporting effectively, to maximise opportunities for learning. Taking account Ask affected people what your organisation should do to learn and improve. Taking account being held accountable Involve people in monitoring activities. Giving account

50. Accountability to affected people Action Giving account, taking account, being held accountable Share information from monitoring with affected people. Giving account Use open-ended listening and other qualitative participatory approaches to make sure the information collected is representative of different groups. Taking account Share and discuss learning with the communities. Taking account Giving account Review Information from feedback and complaints when evaluating the programme. Being held to account