Measuring Commitment to Best Practice
HRI
NEWS
Interview with Johan Schaar
“The HRI is a wellcome initiative in making sure that GHD continues to be a dynamic process that continues to develop”
Johan Schaar, Special Representative of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent for Tsunami Operations, explains the significance of the Good Humanitarian Donorship Initiative (GHD). According to Schaar, the Humanitarian Response Index will help ensure that the GHD is a continuously developing, dynamic process. These and other issues will be analyzed extensively by Johan Schaar in his chapter of the Humanitarian Response Index, which will be presented in the month of November.
Why was the GHD initiative created? In what international context was it born?
There was a general sense that we were managing an unregulated sector as humanitarian donors, at a time when development aid had become quite well structured through agreed OECD-DAC procedures and broad efforts at harmonisation between donors. This happened at a time when the portion of humanitarian assistance, as part of ODA, had increased dramatically after the end of the Cold War.
What does it mean and what are its main contributions?
The GHD simply means more principled humanitarian aid, making sure that the needs of people in crisis and nothing else guides the actions of donors.
What consequences will it have on humanitarian assistance?
The practical consequences are that more authority and flexibility is given to implementing organisations so that aid can be truly tailored to meet needs when and where they arise.
And for the people affected by man-made crises or natural disasters?
This should mean assistance of better quality and peoples who are affected by less publicized or neglected emergencies are also included.
What challenges does current humanitarian assistance face?
The increasing volume of needs following as a result of more unpredictable disasters, partly a result of climate change, is a tremendous challenge as we have seen this summer. And we have the ever-present challenge that humanitarian aid however well designed can never replace the need for determined political action to resolve conflicts.
How does the HRI contribute to the implementation of the GHD?
HRI is a very important and welcome initiative in making sure that GHD continues to be a dynamic process that continues to develop. HRI will help in making donors accountable and support them in their reform efforts.