Annex 7 Accountability to affected people and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse

The table below illustrates how humanitarian actors, including clusters, can meet the commitments and quality criteria ofthe Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS) by including persons with disabilities.

CHS commitments and Quality criteria: How can humanitarian actors support this?

1. Communities and people affected by crisis receive appropriate assistance that is relevant to their needs.

Quality criteria:

  • The humanitarian response is appropriate and relevant.
  • Define a common approach to needs assessment. Consult and involve persons with disabilities when defining and prioritizing response activities.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities, as members of affected communities, to verify whether response plans and activities are appropriate and relevant.

2. Communities and people affected by crisis have access to the humanitarian assistance they need at the right time.

Quality criteria:

  • The humanitarian response is effective and timely.
  • Define benchmarks and targets for timely delivery of assistance, based on the priorities and preferences of affected people. Persons with disabilities are a highly important subgroup that must access all types of information shared about assistance.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities when monitoring communities’ satisfaction with the quality, timeliness and effectiveness of the response.

3. Communities and people affected by crisis are not negatively affected and are more prepared, resilient and less at risk as a result of humanitarian action.

Quality criteria:

  • The humanitarian response strengthens local capacities and avoids negative effects.
  • Define common strategies to strengthen local capacities. Take steps to involve local actors and communities in managing response activities. Develop the capacities of persons with disabilities to become resilient, to be able to obtain information they need, and to find out when and how they can access services.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities when monitoring negative effects that the response might have on affected communities or risks it might create.

4. Communities and people affected by crisis know their rights and entitlements, have access to information and participate in decisions that affect them.

Quality criteria:

  • The humanitarian response is based on communication, participation and feedback.
  • Prepare a communication strategy for persons with disabilities. Adopt two-way communication channels based on their information needs and communication preferences. Make the strategy an integral part of the wider effort to engage and communicate with affected communities.
  • Prepare a strategy for engagement and participation of communities in management and decision-making processes. Make sure it describes how persons with disabilities will be engaged. Make their participation and inclusion a fundamental part of the community engagement strategy.
  • Regularly consult affected people to obtain feedback on the quality of the response and their relationship with aid providers. Persons with disabilities should always provide feedback on project designs.
  • Share information on the situation of persons with disabilities (barriers, risks, capacities...) in partner and cluster meetings and in inter-agency and cross-sectoral coordination mechanisms. Use the information to improve projects.
  • Include organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) in projects, the design of feedback and complaint mechanisms, and when mapping existing and new mechanisms.
  • Disseminate information and raise awareness about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and other legal protection instruments.

5. Communities and people affected by crisis have access to safe and responsive mechanisms to handle complaints.

Quality criteria:

  • Complaints are welcomed and addressed.
  • Identify the most appropriate channels and approaches for feedback and complaint mechanisms. Consider using common platforms.
  • Define clear protocols and the responsibilities of all humanitarian partners and stakeholders when dealing with complaints on sensitive issues such as protection against sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA), genderbased violence (GBV), discrimination on the basis of disability, or other protection risks.
  • Regularly consult affected people to obtain feedback on the accessibility and appropriateness of complaint mechanisms.
  • Use a range of communication channels that are accessible to all persons with disabilities (including sign language, braille, accessible information and communication technology, easy-to-read/plain language materials, etc.).
  • Ensure feedback and complaint mechanisms are tailored to the context and to the communication requirements of all.
  • Ensure that feedback mechanisms that report on the quality of assistance and protection are accessible to all and are confidential.

6. Communities and people affected by crisis receive coordinated and complementary assistance.

Quality criteria:

  • The humanitarian response is coordinated and complementary.
  • Ensure that humanitarian coordination (including clusters) is accessible to and inclusive of local actors. Ensure it focuses on communities’ needs holistically, and particularly on the requirements of people who work with and for persons with disabilities.
  • Regularly share information with other partners and clusters, and at inter-cluster level, to jointly identify and implement measures that address gaps in needs.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities, and other subgroups of the affected population, of different ages and gender, to determine whether assistance is coordinated and complementary.

7. Communities and people affected by crisis can expect delivery of improved assistance as organizations learn from experience and reflection.

Quality criteria:

  • Humanitarian actors continuously learn and improve.
  • Define a common approach to monitoring the quality and the effectiveness of responses.
  • Encourage joint monitoring and regular learning and knowledge sharing among humanitarian partners.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities and other subgroups of the affected population, of different ages and gender, to obtain information on how aid providers have addressed feedback, complaints and other issues.

8. Communities and people affected by crisis receive the assistance they require from competent and well-managed staff and volunteers.

Quality criteria:

  • Staff are supported to do their job effectively and are treated fairly and equitably.
  • Identify any gaps in humanitarian actors’ capacities and develop a common capacity-building strategy if required.
  • Advocate for adequate support, human resources and funding to support local partners’ capacity to deliver quality assistance.
  • Regularly consult with persons with disabilities and other subgroups in the affected population, of different ages and gender, to obtain feedback on the relationship between aid providers and persons with disabilities.

9. Communities and people affected by crisis can expect the organizations that assist them to manage resources effectively, efficiently and ethically.

Quality criteria:

  • Resources are managed and used responsibly for their intended purpose.
  • Define common technical and quality criteria for projects and funding allocations, including criteria for community engagement and participation.
  • Set out clear procedures for monitoring and reporting resource use, including on issues of corruption or nepotism.
  • Regularly consult persons with disabilities, as an integral subgroup of affected people, to obtain information on how efficiently aid resources are used.
  • Train staff in disability and disability inclusion before departure.
  • Explicitly mention disability, gender and life cycle perspectives in job descriptions, evaluations, terms of reference, and monitoring frameworks.
  • Develop partnerships with OPDs. Allocate funding to them and provide support. Ensure that all partnership agreements are in line with the CRPD and guarantee that persons with disabilities shall enjoy protection and access to assistance and are entitled to participate fully in decisions and activities that are relevant to them.

The table below explains how to ensure inclusion of persons with disabilities in the four commitments for humanitarian actors.

IASC CAAP and PSEA commitments
The IASC principles affirm that humanitarian actors will undertake to: What does this mean?

1. Leadership

Demonstrate their commitment to AAP and PSEA by enforcing, institutionalizing and integrating AAP approaches in the humanitarian programme cycle and strategic planning processes at country level, and by establishing appropriate management systems to solicit, hear and act upon the voices and priorities of affected people in a coordinated manner, including about sexual exploitation and abuse, before, during and after an emergency.

Humanitarian actors are acccountable to affected populations (AAP). They will focus on disability inclusion in all phases of the humanitarian programme cycle, including its processes and outputs. They will integrate the voices of persons with disabilities in decision-making processes.

This requires leadership and the support of managers in humanitarian agencies, including managers of clusters and cluster lead agencies.

2. Participation

Adopt agency mechanisms that feed into and support coordinated person-centred approaches that enable women, men, girls and boys, including the most marginalized and at-risk persons among affected communities, to participate in and play an active role in decisions that will impact their lives, well-being, dignity and protection. Adopt and sustain equitable partnerships with local actors to build upon their long-term relationships and trust with communities.

Humanitarian actors will define, implement and coordinate the most appropriate and relevant measures in order to enable persons with disabilities, and other subgroups of affected populations, of different ages and gender, to participate in project decision-making processes, including the work of clusters.

They will encourage and support partners to implement person-centred and participatory approaches in their work.

They will strengthen and prioritize local capacities and promote equitable, respectful relations with local actors, in line with CHS and the Principles of Partnership.

3. Information, feedback and action

Adopt agency mechanisms that feed into and support collective and participatory approaches that inform and listen to communities, address feedback and lead to corrective action. Establish and support the implementation of appropriate mechanisms for reporting and handling of SEA-related complaints. Plan, design and manage protection and assistance programmes that are responsive to diversity and expressed views of affected communities.

Humanitarian actors will define and apply the most appropriate and relevant methods for disseminating information to persons with disabilities and other subgroups of different ages and genders in the affected people. They will collect and analyse feedback and draw on that feedback in decision-making processes. They will report back to affected people on what corrective actions have been taken.

Humanitarian actors and cluster coordinators, with support from the Cluster Lead Agency, will ensure that partners understand and are supported to implement their PSEA responsibilities. They will define clear protocols on how they will deal with and report on sensitive feedback and complaints.

4. Results

Measure AAP- and PSEA-related results at the agency and community level, including through standards such as the Core Humanitarian Standard and the Minimum Operating Standards on PSEA; the Best Practice Guide to establish Inter-Agency Community-Based Complaint Mechanisms and its accompanying Standard Operating Procedures.

Humanitarian actors will define indicators to measure outputs and outcomes for persons with disabilities and other affected groups, including measures of satisfaction with results.

They will ensure that partners have the capacity, and are supported, to apply and measure relevant technical, quality, protection and accountabillity standards.