Emergencies

ActionAid national sites

Click on the map for full size image and campaign locations

422 disasters triggered by natural causes were recorded in 2006

1992 were caused by floods, 124 by windstorms and 27 related to extreme temperature

Nearly 100,000 people were killed as a result

The economic costs were estimated at around US$159bn

Downloads

human security strategic plan 2005-2010

human security annual report 2005

human security annual plan and budget 2007-2009 (narrative)

human security annual report 2006

An Introduction to ActionAid’s work on Human Security

Every year about 300 million people are affected by conflict or natural disasters

Natural disasters like floods, droughts and earthquakes destroy the lives of more than 300 million people every year. Man-made crises like violent conflict affect many millions more.

Poor people are particularly vulnerable in times of disaster. With limited access to information, lack of resources and poor government protection they often suffer the most as a result. That's why ActionAid’s work with people affected by emergencies and conflict plays a key part in our fight against poverty.

We respond to emergencies in the short term by providing medicines, food and shelter to people in need. But long after the TV cameras have left, we continue to work closely with poor communities to help them rebuild their lives and reduce their vulnerability to future disasters and conflicts.

We focus on:

Minimising trauma by supporting the emotional recovery of survivors
Reducing vulnerability of poor communities by working together on building their resilience to future disasters
Building peace by addressing the underlying causes of conflict
Reducing risk of future disasters occurring by reducing hazards s upporting communities to adapt to the effects of climate change

Our approach is to put people first.

Synthesis Report: Review of the engagement of NGOs with the humanitarian reform process

This report is a major output of the three-year NGO UN Humanitarian Reform Project, a consortium of seven leading agencies, led by ActionAid International and funded by DFID.
The project aims to increase the effective engagement of international, national, and local NGOs in humanitarian reform (clusters, humanitarian financing, and Humanitarian Coordinator strengthening) and places a particular emphasis on catalyzing NGO engagement in humanitarian reform processes.
This is the first analysis of its kind of the current state of global humanitarian reform efforts from an NGO perspective and looks at reform in five different countries: Afghanistan, the DRC, Ethiopia, Sudan and Zimbabwe.
It provides a constructive, evidence-based critique of the state of reform and sets out clear recommendations and ways forward in finding solutions to the weaknesses inherent in the humanitarian system.

Read the executive summary here