Not so long ago, the standard procedure in a disaster was for a large non-governmental organisation (NGO) or aid organisation to decide what a community needed and simply to give it to them. “One of [the humanitarian sector’s] worst failings historically is that it has been supply led, not demand led,” says Michael Mosselmans, head of humanitarian division at Christian Aid, an international organisation working to end poverty. “Organisations have food, or blankets and tents, in their warehouses, but they haven’t asked [people in crisis] if that is what they want. Often it is not what they want.”
That’s not to say that mass distribution of aid has no place, particularly in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. “All communities, all crises are different, so we need a more bottom-up vision,” Mosselmans says. However, without direction from those in need, good intentions can have adverse effects: for instance, an influx in the imports of secondhand clothes (most of them donated), can undermine local textile and garment markets. In more acute emergencies, precious time can be wasted unloading donated goods that serve no purpose, while the goods themselves can often contribute to litter and pollution problems.
These challenges were part of the impetus behind the Grand Bargain, an agreement drawn up in 2016 between the largest donors and humanitarian organisations to provide more effective and efficient methods of getting help to people in need. An important part of the Grand Bargain is “survivor and community-led response (SCLR)”, which was spearheaded by Christian Aid in 2018 and continues to be its guiding strategy today – SCLR has informed how Christian Aid responded to recent crises such as the Ukraine war and Turkey earthquake.
SCLR means that international NGOs ask communities affected by natural and man-made disasters what they most need and want, and empower them to get it. It works by an NGO or consortium of NGOs providing grants to local partners. These local partners train smaller community or self-help groups on how to propose projects, with the best ones given micro-grants. The projects could involve giving cash to the most vulnerable individuals or families, restoring local services, or providing supplies such as hygiene kits.
In Haiti, the earthquake in August 2021 led to thousands of deaths, destruction of infrastructure, and a disruption to food production and distribution. But a survivor and community-led response began almost immediately, as Christian Aid’s long-standing network of partner community-based organisations (CBOs) were able to assess the needs of their members.
Wilson Luxen Févrin, Christian Aid’s global humanitarian manager for Latin America and the Caribbean, who is based in Haiti, joined the organisation just after the earthquake. “CBOs are part of our culture. It’s our ‘solidarity spirit’ – we know it’s our responsibility to support each other,” he says.
Although CBOs may be focused on one issue – such as gender-based violence, literacy, or the environment – they are embedded in the community as a whole. Even when individuals are not members of a specific CBO, they know and respect the organisations, and the CBOs can also identify the most vulnerable people in their area.
Grants were given by Christian Aid to provide tarpaulins, mosquito nets, hygiene kits, shovels and water buckets. They also funded food trucks to cook “comfort food” from locally available supplies. These businesses were able to carry on after this stage of the crisis had passed.
The beneficiaries chosen by CBOs after the Haiti earthquake fell into two categories. Some individuals and families, especially those who were disabled or elderly, were given unconditional cash for their immediate needs. But most CBOs asked for micro-grants to strengthen community services against future disasters, such as improving soil conservation. Others wanted funds to ensure children could return to school as quickly as possible.
SCLR is appreciated by the community; they feel a sense of ownership over it, because they have thought up, designed, and implemented the projects themselves. Luxen Févrin hopes that the longer-term outcome of SCLR is that projects won’t just fall by the wayside when international NGOs go home. “SCLR creates self-esteem as [the communities] decide what to do. It also creates capacity as they have learned how to do it,” he says.
This approach is financially prudent for donors: as local expertise is relied upon, and flight and hotel costs are minimised. And with supplies going straight to communities, rather than being held at mass distribution centres, there is less chance of them being stolen, says Luxen Févrin.
There are also psychosocial advantages to SCLR. After being involved in a crisis or disaster, people aren’t just suffering in a material sense. Experiencing a disaster or emergency can be very traumatising for individuals and communities, but being involved with the design and implementation of a recovery project can be part of the healing process.
“Christian Aid believes in the power and resilience, the spirit and ingenuity of people affected by crises to find their own solutions. They aren’t just hapless victims needing help,” says Mosselmans.
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