Coordination to Save Lives: History and Emerging Challenges

Executive Summary

Over the two decades since General Assembly Resolution 46/182 was passed, the multilateral coordination system, including the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has adapted to rapidly changing circumstances.

The Emergency Relief Coordinator and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), the Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP) and the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) remain the cornerstones of humanitarian coordination. But the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance has grown significantly; the number of people targeted for humanitarian assistance through the CAP has almost doubled in the past decade.

Looking ahead, humanitarian needs are expected to continue to rise in the coming decades, because of an increase in the frequency and intensity of natural disasters, rapid population growth, urbanization, rising food prices and other global trends. The increase should be mitigated by continued economic growth in many of the countries most likely to be affected by disasters, making them better able to prepare and respond and to reduce their vulnerability to the impact of shocks. However, this study concludes that overall, additional needs will outweigh improved coping capacities.

Conflicts continue to be a key driver of humanitarian needs, and this is likely to continue. The trend of the militarization of aid will continue to present a challenge, and we will need to continue our strong advocacy to keep our work independent, impartial and neutral.

Advances in information technology are an important development that will help to improve the accuracy and timeliness of humanitarian assessments and response and provide new opportunities for creative advocacy.

The number of humanitarian actors is likely to increase as governments and NGOs from emerging economies become engaged in humanitarian work. This will represent a challenge for humanitarian coordination and an opportunity to bring additional engagement and resources to the humanitarian effort. As humanitarian requirements escalate, there will be a need for governments and humanitarian organizations to anticipate, prepare for and respond to crises more successfully, and to improve their analytical capabilities to understand how global trends and challenges affect vulnerability and needs.

Our internal reforms over the years include the introduction of the Cluster approach in 2005, to make the system more effective. The next phase of the reform process, the IASC Transformative Agenda, aims to improve the leadership, coordination and accountability of the system. OCHA and its partners will need to continue to develop and adapt to meet the evolving challenges.