P l a n /a l f B e r g
refugees in Burkina faso.
pushed into transactional sex or prostitution in order to help feed families struggling with the poverty and chaos disaster brings. Their specific needs, however, are rarely taken into consideration; they are neither counted nor consulted, and because of this they and their rights are ignored. Conducting research, to provide the evidence to inform programming, is vital but is currently, at best, haphazard. A study by Tufts University2 noted that “the humanitarian system shows significant weaknesses in data collection, analysis and response in all stages of a crisis or emergency”, and added that “having information gaps on sex and age limits the effectiveness of humanitarian response in all phases of a crisis”. The study found that, despite the fact that nearly all the guidance notes, whether general, or sectoral and agency specific, require the collection of sex and age disaggregated data (SADD), in practice it was very rare for this data to be collected properly, analysed and used to influence programme work. A critical understanding of who is being responded to – what their needs, rights and skills are – is central to maximising the efficiency and effectiveness of relief 130
and response efforts. In most emergency situations, the local population are first on the scene and have the most in-depth knowledge of their communities. Efforts to help prepare all sections of the population and then to have a system in place that can harness their knowledge and skills during the response phrase is crucial. In the survey of 318 humanitarian workers conducted for this report, consultation with adolescent girls, “listen to girls to know the real needs of adolescents”, was identified as key to both understanding their needs and responding to them effectively. Supporting the development initiatives of adolescent girls, strengthening their ability to protect themselves and to know their rights were seen as essential strategies to improving response. Now is a good time to review humanitarian practice. In the run-up to 2015, when both the Millennium Development Goals3 and the Hyogo Framework for Action4 are set to be reformulated, there is an escalating global discourse on challenging business as usual by integrating Disaster Risk Management (DRM) more fully into development policy and practice. In effect, this will acknowledge the potential