a shrinking humanitarian space? dr sara pantuliano october 2015
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Is humanitarian space shrinking? Common narrative: things are getting worse Politicisation of aid is increasing (9/11) More aid worker attacks Access more difficult to establish But a look at the history reveals that there has been no past ‘golden age’ of humanitarian actionTRANSCRIPT
A shrinking humanitarian space?Dr Sara PantulianoOctober 2015
Definition of ‘humanitarian space’
Agency centred definition: ability of agencies to evaluate and respond to needs, monitor programmes and dialogue with the people
vs People centred definition: people’s ability to access both assistance
and protection
In reality humanitarian space entails complex negotiations with military, political and legal actors on an ongoing basis
Is humanitarian space shrinking?
Common narrative: things are getting worsePoliticisation of aid is increasing (9/11)More aid worker attacksAccess more difficult to establish
But a look at the history reveals that there has been no past ‘golden age’ of humanitarian action
Expansion of agency space
More aid organisations More aid workers More money
Humanitarian action has always been difficult and dangerous in situations of active conflict
Targeting of aid as a result of politics of humanitarian rejection, the underlying causes of which need to be understood
External challenges
Scrutiny is often on external players or factors, e.g.:
national governments
stabilisation operations
UN integrated missions
counter-terrorism legislation
Humanitarian system itself needs greater scrutiny
Humanitarian organisations represent a relatively powerful and well resourced group
Power highly concentrated in the hands of a core group of UN agencies and international NGOs
‘Humanitarian cartel’ 2008: 6 INGOs combined annual spending of $1.7 bn and 60% of NGO
staffing presence 2012: 5 INGOs combined annual spending of 38% of total 2014: ‘Big Five’ (0.1% of humanitarian NGOs worldwide) still account for
31% of total annual NGO expenditure
Evolving humanitarian space
Impression of the humanitarian sector as a predominantly Western construct
Aid agencies driven by competing priorities and imperatives, not just a commitment to principles and best practice
The space has increased and so have the needs of people affected by disaster and conflict
Established system must evolve and involve – not isolate – new players. China has a role to play!
A shrinking humanitarian space?Dr Sara PantulianoOctober 2015