Slide 1

UCL Global Disability Research Group

Humanitarian Disaster Relief:Disability and the New Sphere

Guidelines

Dr Maria Kett

Leonard Cheshire Disability and InclusiveDevelopment Centre,

UCL

(m.kett@ucl.ac.uk)

11th February 2010

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Disability & Humanitarian Emergencies

• UN estimates that 25% of the entirepopulation is adversely affected inone way or another as a result ofdisability

• An estimated 3.5 million refugeesand internally displaced people livewith disabilities in refugee campsand urban slums (WRC).

• Armed conflict will be 8th mostcommon cause of disabilityworldwide by 2020 (WHO)

• 10% of an affected population willdevelop serious psychologicaltrauma

• Disability + poverty = less copingcapacities

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Disability Inclusion…

“Disability is the result of theinteraction between an impairmentlimiting or altering a person’scapacities and that person’senvironment”

(UNCRP)

In emergencies there are structuralchanges that can affect this :

– Physical environment/infrastructure

– Political decisions

– Loss of social support networks

– Poverty

– Lack of knowledge/information

Slide 4

UNCRPD

Article 11 - Situations of risk and humanitarian emergencies:

“States Parties shall take, in accordance with their obligations underinternational law, including international humanitarian law andinternational human rights law, all necessary measures to ensure theprotection and safety of persons with disabilities in situations of risk,including situations of armed conflict, humanitarian emergencies andthe occurrence of natural disasters.”

Slide 5

Assumptions about persons with disabilities (1)

• That they require specialist care

• That specialist care/adaptationsare expensive

• They will be covered by generalaid distributions

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Assumptions about persons with disabilities (2)

• They cannot help other people

• They’re waiting to be helped

• They’re unable to work

Slide 7

Variety of Standards and Guidelines Available

• SPHERE (and INEE companionstandards)

• IASC Guidelines)

• UNHCR handbook

• ICRC Professional Standards forProtection Work

• ALNAP Participation by Crisis-affected Populations Inhumanitarian action

• HAP 2007 standards

• NGO-specific and/or contextspecific Guidelines/Toolkits (e.g. HI,Women’s Refugee Commission)

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So where are we with inclusion in current humanitarianpractice?

“There is little if any consideration of issues relatingto disability in the recent literature or in theevaluations reviewed, and it seems that this isanother mainstreaming challenge struggling toreceive sufficient attention”

(ALNAP 2010, The State of the Humanitarian System: 47)

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Sphere 2004

“The groups most frequently at risk in disasters are women, children, olderpeople, disabled people and people living with HIV/AIDS. In certain contextspeople may also become vulnerable by reason of ethnic origin, religious orpolitical affiliation, or displacement….Specific vulnerabilities influence people’sability to cope and survive in a disaster, and those most at risk should beidentified in each context….

Special care must be taken to protect and provide for all affected groups in anon-discriminatory manner and according to their specific needs. However itshould be remembered that disaster-affected populations posses, andacquire, skills and capacities of their own to cope, and these should berecognised and supported.”

(Sphere 2004:27)

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What are the crosscutting issues and why should they beaddresses in relief and recovery efforts?

• Age (older adults, children)

• Gender

• Disability

• Protection

• HIV/AIDS

• Environment/climatechange/DRR

• Psychosocial

• Education

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Vulnerability

• What is vulnerability and how toapply it to disability?

• Vulnerability can be compoundedby many factors (vulnerabilities),including:

– Gender

– Age

– Underlying health conditions

– Location

– Status (e.g. minority group,combatants…)

• What about capacities andresilience?

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The Challenges…

• How to set standards withoutpre-existing benchmarkers/indicators?

• How to quantify (some)thinginherently difficult to measure,e.g. rights, inclusion,participation…?

• How to increase collaborationacross cross-cutting issues?

Slide 13

The Sphere Project

What is Sphere?

The Sphere Project

Right to lifewith dignity

http://www.sphereproject.org/

Slide 14

The Sphere Project

Brief History

Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in

Disaster Response.

After the Rwanda crisis, pressure to perform up to

expectations has grown.

Trial version 1998, first edition 2000, second edition

2004

Low cost edition 2007.

Next handbook due 2010.

First Sphere “Companion module” (2008): INEE

Education in Emergencies and Chronic Crises and Early

Reconstruction Handbook

The Sphere Project

Right to lifewith dignity

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The Sphere Project

Rationale for a New Edition

The Sphere Handbook a ‘living’ document: regularly

updated

Respond to / reflect changes in the context

Improve accessibility

Update indicators & guidance notes

Enhance linkages

Iron out problems

The Sphere Project

Right to lifewith dignity

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Each Chapter includes

• Minimum standards

IntroductionWhat is Sphere?

• Key indicators

• Guidance notes

The Codeof Conduct

2004EditionThe Humanitarian

Charter

Standards commonto all sectors

Water Supply, Sanitationand Hygiene Promotion

Food Security, Nutritionand Food Aid

Shelter, Settlementand Non-Food items

Health Services

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The Sphere Project

What is being revised?

Humanitarian Charter

Common Standards

Technical Standards

Cross-cutting issues: Children, Disability, DRR,

Gender, Older people, Protection, Psychosocial,

HIV/AIDS

Emerging issues (including: Conflict sensitivity;

Early Recovery; Urban settings; CIVMIL relations;

CCCM; Cash transfers )

The Sphere Project

Right to lifewith dignity

Slide 18

The Sphere Project

Challenges

The project is better known for technical content than

for the Humanitarian Charter. Some donors focus on

this too, while ‘opting out’ of the rights based approach.

Ensuring visibility of cross-cutting issues

Strong advocacy is required at field level to reaffirm

the importance of the Humanitarian Charter.

Adoption of Sphere by UN agencies and governments

Keeping Sphere relevant.

The Sphere Project

Right to lifewith dignity

Slide 19

Criticisms of the Sphere Project

1. A consensus?

2. ‘universalising’

3. Technocratic

4. ‘consumerist’

5. Lack of protection focus

6. No basis in IL

7. No compliance monitoring

8. Duty of who?

9. Quality assurance

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Sphere Project Responses

• Revision – includingprotection focus

• Participation

• Consultation

• Consensus

• Translation

• Sphere India

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Disability Revision Process

• Working Group:

members from specialist academicresearch centre's, INGOs; disabilityINGOs; Disabled People’sInternational; DPOs and IFRC, fromPeru, Kenya, India, Europe andNorth America

• Peer Group:

Over 30 members globally

• Revision workshops:

In Sierra Leone, India, Kenya plusacross agencies (e.g. World Vision)

• Public review (via web)

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Recommendations (General)

• All new initiatives to produce guidelines, tools or standards should includedisability issues through the participation of disability organisations as well asdisabled persons organisations

• Ensure that persons with disabilities are well represented in the relief processand monitor their participation, decision making powers and access to allrelief activities including complaint mechanisms.

• Sphere must reflect UNCRPD

• Terminology must reflect UNCRPD

• Need to move away from over-emphasis on vulnerabilities

• Improve mainstreaming of cross-cutting issues– with specific targeting whenneeded

• Indicators of inclusion

• Disaggregated data

• Links with other cross-cutting issues – where are similarities – e.g.Assessment, participation, representation…

• Re-emphasis non-discrimination (HC)

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Recommendations (Specific)

Slide 24

Questions?

Thank You!