CIAO DATE: 11/04

External Review of the Inter–Agency Standing Committee on Humanitarian Affairs

Abstract

This document, commissioned by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), with the support of the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UNICEF, Oxfam (for the International Council for Voluntary Agencies (ICVA) and the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (SCHR)) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), provides the members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) and their partners with (i) an external review of its performance over the past decade (with an agreed emphasis on the more recent past), (ii) an analysis of its relevance, effectiveness, value-added and sustainability; (iii) an analysis of the principal challenges facing the IASC; and (iv) recommendations on how to strengthen the mechanism, both at headquarters and at field level.

The study was conducted independently, in consultation with a Review Management Group (RMG) consisting of representatives of the above-listed organizations. Interviews were conducted with representatives of members and standing invitees, including international NGOs represented through the various consortia; with representatives of the major western donor governments; and with regional organizations. The study draws on earlier assessments and evaluations of coordination mechanisms, including previous assessments of the IASC. It is additionally informed by the academic literature on the coordination of complex organizational systems, particularly in the international sphere, and by the Study Team’s experience in the management of such systems both within and beyond the UN.

Nevertheless, the study is best understood as a facilitated self-assessment. Though we bring external perspectives to bear, the Review’s primary source of new information was gained from documents provided by and interviews with IASC members and core partners at headquarters and during two field visits.

Full Text (PDF, 68 pages, 741.2 KB)