Humanitarian

ACT Alliance demonstrates its value as the leading faith-based alliance in humanitarian response by working with faith and humanitarian actors at the global, regional, national, and community levels. ACT harnesses the combined strength of its members in delivering humanitarian response at scale and with considerable reach through joint programming approaches.

We commit to an effective ecumenical response that saves lives and maintains dignity, irrespective of race, gender, belief, nationality, ethnicity, or political persuasion. Humanitarian needs define our priorities and the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence guide our actions. We remain committed to strengthening the resilience of affected communities and to being accountable to people and communities affected by a crisis. The ACT Alliance Secretariat is certified against the Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability and is committed to the Sphere Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response.

Our goals

  • Ensure ACT Alliance’s humanitarian responses are managed efficiently, delivered in a timely manner and evidenced appropriately.
  • Work with ACT forums and members to strengthen the resilience of disaster affected communities.
  • Support ACT forums and members to collaboratively ensure accountability to disaster affected populations in line with the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) commitments.
  • Support member-led and evidence-based humanitarian advocacy initiatives that amplify the voices of disaster affected
    communities.
act alliance logo

Key achievements

01

Emergency Steering Committee successfully established, activated more than 30 times since inception with over US$67 million mobilised since 2022 for ACT’s Humanitarian Appeals.

02

ACT Emergency Appeal coverage (the total amount of funds generated versus budget) has 02 risen from 28% to 46% from 2018 to 2023.

03

Systematic approach to appeal management – inception meetings, coordination roundtable
discussions, enhanced monitoring, results frameworks and closing meetings all introduced 03 with a focus on Quality & Accountability.

04

Extensive consultation with members and forums on locally led response within ACT Alliance 04 has led to a Pledge of Commitments which is being launched at the General Assembly 2024.

We are active in more than 120 countries worldwide

Through its national, regional and sub-regional forums ACT Alliance provides humanitarian and emergency preparedness support to local communities helping them during a crisis and to become more resilient.

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Highlights

ACT humanitarian mechanism

The Rapid Response Fund is an innovative funding mechanism designed to put local communities at the centre of decision-making and is recognised as one of few such funding mechanisms across the sector.

The RRF provides valuable opportunities to demonstrate the niche of faith actors in humanitarian response as we work closely with local ACT members and their community networks. On average, the RRF funds 20 emergencies annually and responses are implemented within six months.

The primary mechanism for large scale or global emergencies, including protracted crises: ACT Alliance raises an appeal to its membership with both requesting and funding members co-owning the process. Appeals are open for funding during their entire project period and accessible to both national and international ACT Alliance members.

Consortia represent a new funding mechanism for ACT Alliance. As part of Emergency Preparedness planning, consortiums are established before a disaster strikes and consortium members share a vision and strategic focus. Members self-organise and develop their own financial management models and programme strategies supported by the EPRP process and tools.

Emergency preparedness and response planning is integral to the strengthening of ACT Alliance’s capacity to respond effectively in emergencies through joint programming.

ACT national and regional forums develop emergency preparedness and response plans (EPRPs), working collaboratively to understand potential disaster risks and plan how to respond to emergencies quickly and effectively. Forum EPRPs are accessible by members through an online platform, which can be viewed by other members who may be interested to support them. ACT Forums use specific ACT guidelines and tools to support the process of developing an EPRP which is reviewed regularly.

EPRP platform

As part of the holistic and integrated approach to humanitarian response, development and advocacy, ACT’s emergency preparedness and humanitarian response is supported by stronger humanitarian coordination and advocacy with stakeholders and duty bearers.

In the current strategic period our advocacy focuses on three banner commitments to the Grand Bargain at the World Humanitarian Summit where ACT has made significant investments and where member engagement is quite strong: the localisation agenda and the primary role of national/local members and local faith actors; demonstrating the important role of faith actors in humanitarian response; and strengthening of cash-based programming across the humanitarian sector.


No.
Name
Date | Time
Location

25 February 2015 - For more than 12 months hostilities have affected the South Sudanese population, steaming from a power struggle between the incumbent President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Dr. Riek Machar. On the evening of the 15th December 2013 violence erupted in Juba when Mr. Kiir accused Mr. Machar of staging a coup. This violence has since prevailed. Until today over 1.5 million people have been internally displaced (UN OCHA) and more than 630,000 have fled to the neighbouring countries of Kenya, Sudan, Uganda and Ethiopia (UNHCR) due to the ongoing and often ethnically based violence between Dinka and Nuer tribes, as well as an increasing threat of food insecurity.

Appeals KEN151_SSudan_Refugees

24 February 2015 - Chad is affected by conflicts in neighbouring countries, notably the Central African Republic, Sudan,  and with a population to more than 460,000 refugees (367,000 Sudanese, 93,000 Central Africans) living in refugee camps in the east and South of the country. In late 2013, a massive repatriation of Chadians from CAR took place. A total of 114.000 persons returned back to Chad in 2014 ‐ of which 61,000 are still living in tents and shelters in transit and temporary sites. In January 2015 more than 15,000 Nigerians fled to Chad because of attacks by Boko Haram. The returnees and new refugee arrivals have put additional burdens on the host communities, who are already affected by the degradation of the environment caused by deforestation, over-exploitation of groundwater and pressure on scarce natural resources.

Appeals TCD151_Refugees in Chad

28 January 2015 - Conflicts and high level of violence continues throughout the Syrian Arab Republic, aerial bombings by government forces and attacks by armed opposition, extremist and designated terrorist groups continue to result in death, injury and displacement. It is estimated that 10.8 million people in Syrian Arab Republic remain in need of urgent humanitarian assistance, many of them trapped in hard to reach areas. Over 3 million Syrian refugees have fled to neighboring countries. Around 6.5 million people have been internally displaced by violence. Humanitarian needs remain enormous.

Appeals SYR151_JSL_Humanitarian_Response

10 January 2015 - Heavy rains and heavy stormy rains devastated the country from 5th January to date and the weather forecast is indicating that the heavy down pours will continue. This has caused swelling of the many streams and rivers and consequently flooding of many rivers in Chikwawa, Nsanje and Karonga; and in Karonga this was combined with heavy stormy rains which have destroyed so many houses. A total of 24,938 people have been affected, with more than 8 people dead and several other people have been seriously injured. The floods and heavy stormy rains have greatly damaged crops, food items in homes, household assets, livestock, road networks, houses, boreholes and toilets have been heavily damaged in those districts. In total the floods have destroyed 1,200 hectares of cultivable land in Chikwawa while other districts are still doing assessments to establish the extent of the damage. A total of 1,760 houses have been destroyed and affected people are being been evacuated to primary schools, churches and other houses from trading centres. Official reports from the affected districts with actual figures and realistic magnitude of damage will be shared in a situation report as soon as possible once comprehensive assessment has been done by the Area Civil Committees. Rapid Responses Funds 02-2015_Malawi_flooding

 9 January 2015 - In July 2014, Israel launched Operation Protective Edge against the Gaza Strip, following. This has resulted in an aggravated protection crisis in Gaza with serious and negative humanitarian consequences. To date, more than 2145Palestinians have been killed, and more than 11231were injured, in which 501were children. Most of the victims are reported to be civilians. More than 500,000 people were forced to leave their homes in Gaza and find shelter in UNRWA and governmental schools, mosques and health facilities. The psychosocial and health conditions, especially of children living in Gaza, are a major concern which needs to be addressed. ACT members are planning to continue supporting the neediest people in terms of health, food and non‐food items, psychosocial, and economic support. In addition to supporting the work on advocating for ending the blockade to reduce and alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza.

Appeals_01_2015_Support to Gaza and the West Bank_PSE141_Rev. 2

9 January 2015 - The National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) in Assam state of India warned of retaliation when the state police launched an operation against them on 21 December 2014 which resulted in the death of two of their members. The NDFB attacked on 23 December 2014 in three districts of Assam ? Kokrajhar and Sonitpur which resulted in the deaths of 85 people (73 Adivasis and 12 others). The ethnic violence has resulted in the displacement of 72, 675 people who are sheltering in 61 relief camps. Most of the displaced are women and children belonging to the tribal communities in Kokrajhar, Sonitpur, Chirag, Baksa, Bongagaon and Udalguri. In retaliation, three Bodo people in a village near Behali in Sonitpur  district were killed. Both communities have burned houses and damaged properties in different parts of the state. Fresh violence erupted again in Assam in the bordering districts of Kokrajhar (Bhutan border) and Sonitpur (Arunachal Pradesh border) on 26 December. RRFs_1_2015_India_Assam violence_RRF1


No.
Name
Date | Time
Location

Resources

Team

Niall O’Rourke

Head of Humanitarian Affairs

Global

niall.orourke@actalliance.org

Geneva, Switzerland

Caroline Njogu

Regional Humanitarian Officer

Africa

Caroline.Njogu@actalliance.org

Nairobi, Kenya

Cyra Bullecer

Humanitarian Operations Manager

Global

Cyra.Bullecer@actalliance.org

Bangkok, Thailand

George Majaj

Humanitarian Programme Advisor

MENA

Amman, Jordan

Anyi Elizabeth Morales Mora

Humanitarian Programme Officer

Latin America and the Caribbean

Bogota, Colombia

Marjorie Schmidt

Finance Coordinator

Global

marjorie.schmidt@actalliance.org

Geneva, Switzerland