On April 17, Start Network received an urgent alert from two of its 42 member organisations, asking for rapid funding to combat a cholera outbreak in northeast Nigeria. The other members of the United Kingdom-based humanitarian network were quickly consulted, but they were divided over whether, of all the world’s pressing humanitarian needs, this one deserved some of the network’s precious funds.
The Start Fund, which provides rapid humanitarian aid for overlooked crises, is marking the second anniversary of the World Humanitarian Summit by sharing the impact of its 4th year, through its new annual report released today.
In line with the Grand Bargain commitments, which came out of the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, the Disasters & Emergencies Preparedness Programme (DEPP) has strengthened preparedness, created and supported collaborative networks, and facilitated locally led humanitarian responses to crises.
When a fire ripped through Ellias Mollah, a ‘slum’ in Dhaka, the Start Fund Bangladesh provided help when there was no other support, meaning the people in Ellias Mollah who lost their homes, could quickly access cash to rebuild, and did not have to move away from their job and livelihoods.
The Start Network is aiming to create national and regional hubs, which will be collectives of organisations in individual countries or regions. These hubs will function like local versions of the current international Start Network. When fully set up, each hub would manage its own finances, membership and governance, while being able to access services provided by the global Start Network.
The Disaster and Emergencies Preparedness Programme (DEPP) Bangladesh Innovation Lab organised Capacity Building training at the Dhaka Community hospital on the 3rd April.
The Start Network is seeking the views of aid agencies on a new form of membership being launched in order to shift greater power and resources to those closest to humanitarian crises.
UK NGOs, DFID, the Charity Commission and safeguarding experts pledged to improve safeguarding standards, following the Safeguarding Summit on 5 March 2018. Here is our joint statement.
Our video focuses on the work the Disasters and Emergencies Preparedness Programme (DEPP) has been doing in Kenya. We focus on empowering women, positioning local actors to better respond to crisis, such as food insecurity and also building the capacities of humanitarian agencies so that they are more inclusive in their responses.
