Risk reconsidered – launch of the Recommendations and a Checklist on Scaling up DRR in Humanitarian Action

‘Scaling up DRR in Humanitarian Action’ provides suggestions to make DRR integral to humanitarian planning and programming at country and local levels and help practitioners strengthen risk-informed programming throughout the Humanitarian Programme Cycle. The objective of the session is to launch and advocate for the application of the checklist and recommendations stemming from the review of HNOs and HRPs in 2021 and the three pilot countries.

Expected Outcomes of the Session

• Increased awareness of the final Recommendations and a Checklist on Scaling up risk reduction in Humanitarian Action.

• Increased application of the Checklist in HPC 2022 countries.

• Awareness/discussion on next steps strengthening capacity to deliver on integrating risk reduction considerations in humanitarian action.

Background

In 2019, a global consultation was initiated with IASC and a wider range of DRR partners in the context of humanitarian action. In 2020, these consultations culminated in the development of a first edition of Recommendations and a Checklist on Scaling up DRR in Humanitarian Action, with a particular focus on the Humanitarian Programme Cycle. The Checklist has undergone pilot testing in three countries – Pakistan, Haiti and Bangladesh. UNDRR, in close collaboration with OCHA and partners, has also undertaken a global review of how DRR is integrated in 2021 HNOs and HRPs. This review (to be finalized in April) will inform an updated version of the Checklist to be launched in this HNPW Session.

The initiative, coordinated by UNDRR and part of the Work Plan of the UN DRR Focal Points Group in 2020-2021, was built based on a recognition of growing humanitarian needs and increased complexity and duration of crises, with more than one billion people living in countries affected by long-term humanitarian crises in 2019. In 2019, 11 of the 20 countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change had HNOs/HRPs for the past seven consecutive years. In an increasingly connected world, where risks cascade, critical opportunities are being missed on how to reduce risk in humanitarian contexts. There is a recognition in both humanitarian and development communities that short-term solutions are ineffective in reducing risk, and that fragmentation between humanitarian and development responses often poses a barrier to reducing risk and vulnerability.

PROGRAMME: 

MODERATOR - Ms. Stephanie Speck, Chief, Communications, Advocacy and Knowledge Management, UNDRR

PRESENTER - Ms. Paola Albrito, Chief, Intergovernmental processes, Interagency cooperation and Partnerships, UNDRR

OPENING SPEAKER - Mr. Rein A. Paulsen, Director ai Coordination Division, OCHA

PANELISTS

- Ms. Aisha Jamshed, Country Director, Welthungerhilfe Pakistan, Chair of National Steering Committee, Start Network, Pakistan

- Dr. Thomas Zahneisen, Humanitarian Director, German Federal Foreign Office

- Ms. Nurun Nuhar, Joint Chief, Planning Commission and Project Director, National Resilience Program, Bangladesh

- Mr. Jerry Chandler, Director-General, Directorate General for Civil Protection, Haiti (TBC)

CLOSING SPEAKER - Mr. Ricardo Mena, Director, UNDRR