May 27, 2010

Following the tragedy that struck Haiti on the 12th January of 2010, the evaluation and humanitarian community has held a series of meetings to analyze and improve collaboration in evaluating the international response. In May, during the ALNAP and European Policy Center meetings, Ross Mountain, executive Director of DARA, explained that despite the immediate and generous donor response, “today, tens of thousands of men, women and children remain trapped in or around Port-au-Prince amid the rubble and in makeshift camps.”

What has failed?

Undoubtedly, aid efforts in Haiti could have been better coordinated. “Coordination is about achieving results,” says Mountain, and “the situation in Haiti clearly shows that effective leadership is what drives effective coordination. We need to know if those who were responsible for coordination exercised leadership and delivered effectively. Did they focus on outcomes for the Haitians in need of humanitarian aid?” In addition to the insufficient coordination by the international community, the Haitian government’s limited capacity also hampered the effectiveness and efficiency of the humanitarian response.

Back to basics

Ross Mountain encouraged donors “to go back to basics, to support and implement the principle of neutral, impartial humanitarian action.” He also stressed the need to empower the Commissioners and their humanitarian and development agencies. “In Haiti, the EC should play a leading role in creating a ‘coalition of the willing,’ advocating for the primary position of civilian organizations in implementing a neutral, independent and effective humanitarian action.” And he concluded: “For the EU, Haiti is a human challenge, and it is also an opportunity to continually reform and improve the EU’s approach to humanitarian assistance.”