The Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW) 2024, an annual humanitarian conference, one of the largest events of its kind, will be held in a hybrid format from 29 April to 10 May 2024. This event provides a collaborative space for practitioners and experts from a large variety of humanitarian stakeholders including UN agencies, NGOs, the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, academia, the military, private sector initiatives, and Member States.    As in previous years, more than 60 humanitarian networks and partnerships will be invited to hold their meetings at the event and organize joint sessions in the nine Areas of Common Concern (AOCC) for inter-network collaboration. These are: 1) Accountability to Affected Population, 2) Anticipatory Action, 3) Climate Crisis, 4) Emergency Response in a Pandemic, 5) Inclusion, 6) Integrating Security Risk Management in Humanitarian Action, 7) Localization, 8) Nexus, and 9) Organizational Culture and Power Relations.   Date The first week (29 April to 3 May) will be held remotely, the second week (6 to 10 May) will be organized face-to-face at the CICG in Geneva.  Registration Information Networks and partnerships will invite their members and stakeholder directly to the sessions they organize. As in previous years, most session will be open for public access where also those without invitation can register as participant. Sessions of interest can be found by keyword or organizing network/partnership in the online event program. There is no attendance fee for participants, but participants have to cover their costs for travel and accommodation, and make their hotel arrangements. Nominal invitations for visa support will be provided for speakers and panel members by the inviting network or partnership upon request. The HNPW secretariat does not provide travel support or nominal invitations to participants. For information, the session outcomes of the last HNPW (7 to 28 April 2023) are available in the online event program. A brief video of the HNPW 2023 is available here. Please visit the HNPW event portal for more information.   More about the HNPW? The HNPW is an annual event where humanitarian networks and partnerships organize meetings to inform about, and further advance related activities, and to collaborate with other networks and partnerships in Areas of Common Concern. Photo Credit: Unsplash

This side event centers on the localized approach to early recovery, emphasizing the pivotal role of local communities in the recovery projects. Syria's fragmented landscape has resulted in distinct models for addressing humanitarian needs and recovery efforts across the different control areas. The event will address the role of local NGOs, CSOs and diaspora Syrian civil society actors and networks in the design and implementation of early recovery projects, emphasizing a principled intersectional approach. It will delve into the necessity of supporting local structures and the challenges faced in bridging the gap between development and humanitarian interventions.  The panel discussion will be moderated by Rand Skhitta, coordinator of the Syrian Civil Society Networks Platform SCNP, and live streamed on Zoom. There will also be Arabic translation.  Register here

The Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW) 2024 is an annual humanitarian conference, one of the largest events of its kind and will be held in a hybrid format from 29 April to 10 May 2024. This event provides a collaborative space for practitioners and experts from a large variety of humanitarian stakeholders including UN agencies, NGOs, the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, academia, the military, private sector initiatives, and Member States.  There is no attendance fee. Learn more here.  IOM crisis simulation workshop: Coordinating with diaspora humanitarian actors While diaspora actors have long contributed in various forms to humanitarian response efforts in their respective Countries of Origin (CoOs), most of this involvement has historically been ad hoc. These contributions include contextual knowledge, local connections, quick mobilization, financial support, and volunteers. The International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Framework for Diaspora Engagement in Humanitarian Assistance and its accompanying Crisis Response Guidance are examples of coordination mechanisms that international humanitarian actors and diaspora organizations have developed and implemented to better integrate and engage non-traditional actors in humanitarian responses. IOM's Framework was developed through a multi-stakeholder consultation process, and it has been used in Haiti, the Philippines and Somalia. This interactive simulation workshop is designed to test these mechanisms focusing on the interoperability of institutional humanitarian actors with diaspora organizations coordinating assistance during a simulated crisis. The exercise will also explore the level of cooperation that humanitarian actors, both traditional and non-traditional, might expect from one another. It is anticipated that participants will leave the session with useful tools for organizing their humanitarian efforts, a better knowledge of the processes involved in multi-stakeholder coordination, and a wider range of contacts and resources to help communities affected by disasters experience more long-term, lasting effects. Furthermore, the input and feedback received from the attendees' participation will help to improve the mechanisms so that they can be used in other situations. The overall scope of this session will be to apply the mechanisms for strengthening the engagement of diaspora in humanitarian operations by: - Presenting tools, response mechanisms and guidelines to enhance coordination between institutional humanitarian actors and diasporas, explaining who can benefit, when and where it is applicable, and how this can lead to more collaborative and effective humanitarian assistance - Conducting an interactive exercise where the participants apply IOM’s crisis response guideline to a simulated crisis scenario to facilitate coordination with diaspora and other non-traditional actors - Discussing lessons learned from the activity   Photo credit: Unsplash/Ammar Nassir

Find us at stand 33! Join us to hear more about our global initiative, our engagement with diaspora and local actors and get our latest research and factsheets on the Somali, Afghan and Ukrainian diaspora.  DEMAC's session on May 8th: diaspora's role in responding to climate disasters and supporting the resilience of local communities to environmental degradation This session will be organized in hybrid format. You can follow online  In 2023 DEMAC in partnership with IOM conducted a case study to explore how diaspora respond to climate-induced disasters and support community resilience and adaptation to environmental degradation in South Sudan, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Peru and Tuvalu. The main patterns and trends are the following: 1.     Case study diaspora actors were important in supporting longer term adaptation. Some are supporting climate-smart agricultural practices, income diversification, housing adaptation, internal relocation. 2.    DOs contribute to climate change mitigation efforts through awareness raising, advocacy, and direct involvement in carbon removal projects, encompassing tree planting and more. 3.    DO responses were strongest in the context of disaster response and recovery. Disasters triggered a substantial response from DOs, with charity, religion, and patriotism among motivators. 4.   DOs can share information & complement technology used for predicting disasters, anticipatory action and early warning efforts usually led by governments and institutional actors. Objectives of this session:  1. Present findings and lessons learned from the DEMAC and IOM Case Study “Diaspora Response to Climate change-related hazards in South Sudan, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Peru and Tuvalu” – DEMAC/IOM - February 2024 2. Discuss feasible steps that enable an improved engagement between diaspora organisations, local organisations and institutional humanitarian actors in preparing and responding to climate change-related hazards (CCRHs): - What are the challenges for diaspora and humanitarian actors to collaborate and jointly address h CCRHs? - What best practices and lessons learned from diaspora initiatives could institutional humanitarian actors draw on to support community-based disaster preparedness and risk reduction initiatives? - What actionable recommendations can be easily implemented to strengthen engagement and cooperation between diaspora organizations, local and institutional humanitarian actors in addressing CCRHs? Agenda: 11:00 – 11:10: Welcome and Introduction  11:10 – 11:25: Presentation of key findings and recommendations of the Case Study 11:25 – 12:05: Facilitated discussion with the panelists 12:05 – 12:25: Q&A and discussion   Photo Credit: Uganda (c) Unplash/Bill Wegener

The Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW) 2024 is an annual humanitarian conference, one of the largest events of its kind and will be held in a hybrid format from 29 April to 10 May 2024. This event provides a collaborative space for practitioners and experts from a large variety of humanitarian stakeholders including UN agencies, NGOs, the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, academia, the military, private sector initiatives, and Member States.  There is no attendance fee. Learn more here.  IOM session: Strengthening mapping capacities and coordination of humanitarian assistance with diaspora organizations The impact of diaspora contributions goes far beyond remittances because they give affected communities a lifeline before, during, and after disasters by sending medical missions, sharing skills, strengthening infrastructure, providing medicine for sick family members, and coming up with creative solutions to close gaps in the responses of traditional humanitarian actors. Through their grasp of local cultural contexts and ability to meet urgent needs, diaspora organizations are uniquely positioned to empower local communities. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has created several tools, such as a Diaspora Mapping Toolkit and a diaspora repository, to strategically and effectively engage with diaspora communities worldwide to maximize their potential across the humanitarian-development nexus. In this hands-on workshop, attendees will learn how to apply these tools to a particular scenario in preparation for a crisis. Participants will need to bring a laptop to actively participate in the exercise. After the event, participants will have a comprehensive strategy and a set of useful tools to identify and collaborate with diaspora organizations within sectors, thematic areas, or contexts. The overall scope of the session will be to: - Introduce IOM’s Mapping Toolkit and other associated tools for diaspora engagement - Discuss lessons learned from the activity. - Conduct a practical exercise to apply the tools and develop concrete mapping plans to reach out and engage diaspora humanitarian actors in a particular setting focusing on preparedness    Photo credit: Unsplash/GeoJango Maps