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Responding to complex disasters
"Today, complex disasters represent more than half of our work," said Anne M. Bauer, Chief of FAO's Special Relief Operations Service (TCOR). This new wave of more complicated emergencies requires a multi-faceted response by the international humanitarian community. FAO is one of many United Nations agencies, international organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) active in humanitarian assistance that come together, each contributing its own experience and expertise, in a concerted effort to bring relief and rehabilitation to disaster-stricken communities and countries. "In areas torn apart by conflict, many times the needs are so enormous that one organization alone cannot address them all," according to Bauer. "There is often a need for all to be operative at the same time, with a very clear division of labour." UN agencies work together The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) organizes the UN response to emergency situations worldwide and promotes fund mobilization through interagency consolidated appeals, in which the various UN agencies estimate the needs of the sector they are responsible for. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has an overall responsibility for assisting the refugees, for example, the World Health Organization (WHO) for assistance to the health sector and FAO deals with the agricultural, livestock and fisheries rehabilitation. Once funding is secured, each agency moves a team of experts into the field, where it works shoulder-to-shoulder with international organizations and NGOs active in the sector to help as many affected people as possible in the most efficient way. A series of letters have been exchanged between FAO and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), drawing up a framework of cooperation between the two agencies. While both are likely to be active in the same areas, they have quite different mandates and can complement each other's work. "ICRC is a frontline agency in highly conflictual environments covering areas while hostilities are still on," explained Bauer, a veteran of the humanitarian assistance sector who came to FAO from the position of Director of the Norwegian Red Cross' International Humanitarian Assistance Programme. "FAO, on the other hand, primarily addresses the situation at the very early rehabilitation phase." The Organization, through TCOR - its focal point for emergency interventions - arranges the delivery of emergency aid in the form of agricultural inputs, such as seeds, tools, fertlilizer or vaccines for urgent animal health project, and rehabilitation and reconstruction services to developing countries hit by disasters. As one of the UN's largest specialized agencies, FAO has an important role to play as a focal point for coordination and technical expertise in the agricultural sector. No two emergency situations are alike "No emergency situation is exactly like another one," said Bauer, "but in the classical situation you have a number of international agencies and NGOs active in the agricultural field at one time and they look to FAO for guidance. They often need advice as to the best seeds to distribute, where are needs the greatest, who are the appropriate technical authorities in the country." FAO often turns to the other organizations for help, too. "If FAO is in charge of a seed distribution programme in a country, we very often rely on the national or international NGOs active in the area for their help in data collection or seed distribution," explained Bauer. "Continuous dialogue and continuous cooperation are crucial." In 1998, TCOR carried out 103 special relief interventions in some 48 countries around the world. Some of the programmes currently in place include the distribution of seeds and tools to refugee farmers returning to Bosnia and Herzegovina, coordination of emergency agricultural aid to farmers in Burundi, and agricultural assessment and planning of relief efforts in countries in Central America struck by Hurricane "Mitch".
22 January 1999 Related links |
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