Outline of presentation

• What is the International Humanitarian Partnership• Membership• History • Aims• Principles• Services• Process• Operations• Training and exercises• Lessons learned• What next?

What is IHP?

Informal donor group of humanitarian responders

• Informal co-operation

• Voluntary participation

• Based on personal relations

Membership

Danish Emergency Management Agency (DEMA)

Department for International Development, UK (DFID)

Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning, Norway (DCPEP)

Finnish Ministry of the Interior, FinnRescueForce (FRF)

Humanitarian Aid Division, Netherlands MOFA

Swedish Rescue Services Agency (SRSA)

History

1994: UNHCR - Government Service Packages

1995: DHA - Support for UNDAC team DEMA, DFID and SRSA

1998: DCDEP and FRF join

2001: NL joins

Aims

• Provide practical support for multilateral & bilateral action

• Demonstrate donor cooperation & coordination• Improve operational effectiveness and efficiency • Cost benefit• Improve interoperability• Provide training & capacity building• The beneficiaries

Principles

• Implementation is voluntary• No MoU• Free to opt in or out of joint activities• Cooperation on an equal footing• Cooperation levels

– Policy– Training– Technical– Field operations

• Does not restrict individual responses

Services

Packages, modules & training• Logistics• Communications• Office facilities• Accommodation & Catering• Training facilities• Field exercises

Process

• IHP countries become aware of need for international assistance

• One or more IHP national focal points are requested to take on an operation or

• National focal points get in contact– Information on own policy and capacity– Agreement on joint and/or own operations

• Reply to requesting agency• Close contact during national preparation• Joint/Collaborative operations on the ground• Changes in hand

Operations 1

1996/97: Burundi (UNDAC) DEMA, DFID & SRSA

1997: Zaire (UNHCR Air Operations Cell)DFID & SRSA

1997: Guinea (UNDAC Support)DEMA & SRSA

1999: Albania (Airfield Handling for UNHCR)DFID & DEMA; DCPEP (WFP)

Operations 2

1999: East Timor (OCHA) DFID & SRSA

2001: Guinea (UNHCR) DCPEP & SRSA2002: Afghanistan:

(UNOCHA) DEMA & DFID(WFP) DCPEP, DFID & SRSA

2003: Iraq: (UNOHCI) DEMA, DFID, FinnRescue, SRSA (HIC, UNJLC) DFID (WFP, UNMAS) SRSA

Training and Exercises

•Since 1995: UNDAC training - Exercise design, Support Staff and equipment

•2000, 2001, 2002: UNDAC Support Staff Training Courses

•Pre-deployment training

•1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004: TRIPLEX

- IHP and OCHA plus invited participants

Lessons Learned

• IHP WORKS:– Exceeded expectations – Joint operations make more operations possible– Joint operations benefit from mutual knowledge– Joint operations save money– Joint training and exercise develop knowledge– Personal relationships make things easier– Greater potential but possible overstretch

The overall humanitarian effort benefits from IHP

• Embrace the greater potential– New members (Belgium?)– Additional partners? (e.g. NGOs, CIMIC)– Support more actors (HIC, UNJLC, UNHAS)

• Improve procedures– Rotating Chair– Permanent Secretariat (FCSU)– Encourage partners to go through Secretariat– More efficient use of limited resources

What Next? 1

• Emphasis on Flexibility• Maintain informality• Demand driven• No unnecessary replication• Move with the times• Encourage further cooperation at all levels

– In policy, operations & training

• Work more closely with our partners

What Next ? 2