8/19/2019 Putting People at the Heart of Humanitarian Action2

1/3

Because my humanitarian favors reach thousand of communities 1

Minani Leodegard

World Humanitarian Summit

Consultant.

8/1/2015 

PUTTING PEOPLE AT THE HEART OF HUMANITARIAN ACTION 

8/19/2019 Putting People at the Heart of Humanitarian Action2

2/3

PUTTING PEOPLE AT THE HEART OF HUMANITARIAN ACTION August 1, 2015 

2

Innovation Promotion during Humanitarian Crises and emergencies.

Humanitarian system faces grave challenges, as record numbers of people

are displaced for longer periods by natural disasters and escalating conflicts.

At the same time new technologies, partners, and concepts allow

humanitarian actors to understand and address problems quickly and

effectively. To contend with these growing, and changing, demands,

organizations are increasingly exploring the idea of “humanitarian

innovation,” which draws upon concepts from the private sector to adapt and

improve the humanitarian system. As a sign of its importance,

 “Humanitarian Assistance through Innovation Promotion” will be the centre

point of this intended point o0f discussion of putting people at the centre of

humanitarian action.

As humanitarian aid has changed immensely over the recent decades, also

the number of actors engaging in the field of humanitarian aid is increasing.

This includes the various UN agencies, national governments, the Red Cross

movement, several large international NGOs, a multitude of smaller ones,

foundations and private initiatives with often limited experience and

capability of implementation. In many cases, this leads to problems in

cooperation, coordination and harmonization of sustainable humanitarian

assistance. These new developments have raised a number of questions

concerning the principles and quality standards of humanitarian aid. To

achieve this sustainable humanitarian assistance, humanitarians should use

the term “innovation” to refer to the role of technology, products and

processes from other sectors, new forms of partnership, and the use of the

ideas and coping capacities of crisis-affected people. However, as with many

emerging ideas, use of the term in the humanitarian system has lacked

8/19/2019 Putting People at the Heart of Humanitarian Action2

3/3

PUTTING PEOPLE AT THE HEART OF HUMANITARIAN ACTION August 1, 2015 

3

conceptual clarity, leading to misuse, overuse, and the risk that it may

become hollow rhetoric. A better understanding of the humanitarian

assistance through innovation promotion can bring great benefits to the

humanitarian system.