The Humanitarian Response Index helps governments and civil society to monitor the quality and effectiveness of donors and ensure that humanitarian funding has the greatest possible impact for people in need. The HRI 2010 report draws on extensive independent field research, complemented by published information on donor government’s aid policies and practices. The report has five key findings:

1. The increasing politicisation of humanitarian aid means millions of people are not getting the humanitarian assistance and protection they need. Donor governments need to ensure that aid is prioritised and allocated on the basis of the needs of civilian populations, not on meeting political, economic, or military and security objectives.

2. Continued gaps in the protection of civilians and lack of safe humanitarian access means that vulnerable populations are at risk of harm, as are humanitarian workers. Donor governments need to prioritise protection of civilians and facilitate access by humanitarian organisations to crisis-affected populations, so that they are not put at risk and receive the assistance they need.

3. A lack of political commitment and investment in conflict and disaster prevention, preparedness and risk reduction threatens to intensify the impact of future humanitarian crises. Donor governments need to invest significantly more resources and political will into preventing, preparing and reducing the impact of future crises, including climate change vulnerability.

4. Slow progress in reforming the humanitarian system means that aid efforts are not as efficient or effective as they should be. Donor governments need to scale-up their support for efforts to reform the humanitarian sector, and improve aid effectiveness.

5. Donor governments are collectively failing to improve their transparency and downward accountability towards affected populations. Donor governments need to increase transparency and accountability in their humanitarian assistance to help ensure aid efforts have the greatest possible benefit for populations affected by crises.