Accountability to affected populations (AAP)71 is understood to be a mutual responsibility of aid providers and other stakeholders (donors, governments) who have committedto use their power and resources ethically and responsibly to ‘put people at the centre’ of humanitarian actions. Humanitarianactors have a duty to make sure assistance generates the best possible outcomes for all groups who are affected by a crisis,including those who may be less visible, such as persons with disabilities. They have undertaken to achieve this by consistentlyapplying technical and quality standards; coordinating their actions to maximize coverage and minimize risks, gaps and duplication;listening to and engaging with affected people; and acting on their feedback.
AAP focuses on the rights, dignity and protection of an affected community in its entirety. It requires humanitarian actorsto identify and address the needs and vulnerabilities of members of affected communities; it equally requires them to recognizeand harness the capacities, knowledge and aspirations of those communities.
To effectively ensure that accountability is extended to all affected people, including persons with disabilities, mechanismsfor accountability must be accessible to persons with disabilities, and must consider their requirements. This duty includesa duty to focus on disability inclusion throughout the humanitarian programme cycle, ensuring that persons with disabilitiesparticipate in decision-making processes, and communicating information to them in multiple accessible formats.
Annex 7 discusses how humanitarian actors, including clusters, can help to achieve the commitments and quality criteria set out inthe Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS) by working in practical ways to include persons with disabilities.