4. Participation and Accountability

Vision

SCHR drives a vision of the future in which affected populations will participate in shaping the kind of assistance they receive and their relationship with aid providers.

We align with the CHS description of participation and use the Grand Bargain Workstream 6 definition, which can be found here.  We also promote the application of the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) as a way of measuring effective participation.

In our own programming, we integrate meaningful participation in practice, seeking to support permanent and sustainable change in the way we do business. We promote the link between effective participation and the quality and effectiveness of humanitarian response.

We also believe that participation and accountability is important in and of itself.

We build on a long history of supporting participation and accountability. We were the original sponsor of the “Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief” (1998) and, with InterAction, launched the Sphere project in 1997 to set minimum standards in core areas of humanitarian assistance. Our members were also critical in developing the Core Humanitarian Standard, and we led the establishment of the Humanitarian Quality Assurance Initiative.

Work within and between members

  • Ensure programs are supported by strong complaints, feedback and other accountability mechanisms, with a preference for interagency mechanisms

  • Strengthen local dialogue and harness technologies to support more agile, transparent but appropriately secure feedback.

  • Build systematic links between feedback and corrective action to adjust programming.

  • Constantly review current practices to inform analysis of enablers and dis-enablers of effective participation.

  • Improve leadership and governance mechanisms at the level of the humanitarian country team and cluster/sector mechanisms to ensure engagement with and accountability to people and communities affected by crises

  • Ensure engagement with Needs Assessment and Analysis frameworks.

Work at the SCHR Secretariat

  • Co-convene the Grand Bargain workstream 6 on the participation revolution and support delivery of its workplan

  • Closely engage with IASC Results Group 2

Key Forums and External Stakeholders

  • IASC Results Group 2 and the Global Education Cluster

  • Ground Truth Solutions and CDAC Network

  • CHS Alliance, Sphere, HQAI, Inter-Agency Humanitarian Evaluation (IAHE) Steering Committee

  • Network for Aid Response (NEAR), the Alliance for empowering Partnership (A4EP), International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA),

  • Good Humanitarian Donorship Alliance

  • Humanitarian Program Cycle Steering Group