Future Humanitarian Financing

Reform of humanitarian financing is one of three goals World Vision set out in our recommendations for the World Humanitarian Summit. The daunting scale of the humanitarian funding gap and the many documented – and seemingly intractable – humanitarian financing challenges – are increasingly apparent.

Financing for humanitarian assistance is designed to respond to the symptoms of crises and is not adequate or appropriate to address the underlying factors and drivers of emergencies.

The current system is still characterised by statist, mainly intergovernmental and bilateral, approaches to financing responses. Financing for humanitarian assistance is designed to respond to the symptoms of crises and is not adequate or appropriate to address the underlying factors and drivers of emergencies.

The ‘one size fits all’ international architecture of humanitarian policymaking and response prevents the contextualisation of funding. Sudden-onset natural disasters, responses to complex and protracted emergencies, rural crises (compared with urban ones), national emergencies and regional cross-border crises must make use of the same general funding mechanisms. As a result, funding is not context appropriate, is not targeted according to need and often arrives too late, with funding cycles that are too short.

Looking Beyond the Crisis, ventures beyond an explanation of the current concerns around humanitarian financing to propose practical recommendations with  the potential to transform the current system. The recommendations to improve anticipation and analysis, upgrade financing architecture, improve efficiency and reduce transaction costs, represent a practical way forward for the humanitarian community.  The report helps to shift the dialogue around humanitarian financing to a new phase, one of identifying and refining possible solutions, a crucial move to ensuring we are prepared to address the needs of future humanitarian crises.

 

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