In 2022, the international humanitarian system sought USD 46 billion in donor finance, to support 183 million people across 63 countries. Creating effective accountability for humanitarian aid on such a scale is a perennial challenge. External scrutiny of international humanitarian organisations (HOs) has increased over the years, as funders have sought more and better evidence that their resources are being used to best effect. Organisational assessments by MOPAN are one such scrutiny process.
Accountability for humanitarian finance should rest on a shared understanding of what constitutes good organisational performance for HOs. However, past MOPAN assessments reveal that HOs often score poorly in key performance areas, raising a question as to whether the right performance measures are being used. Furthermore, ambitious international agreements on humanitarian system reform – and the difficulties of translating many of those commitments into practical action – opens the possibility that the performance expectations placed on individual HOs may not be fully consistent with evolving expectations for the performance of the system as a whole.
This study was therefore undertaken to explore what ‘good’ looks like in the organisational effectiveness of HOs. It explores two main research questions.
1. How can HOs best reflect agreed objectives on reform of the international humanitarian system in their own organisations? The study looks in particular at the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus, accountability to affected populations (AAP) and localisation.
2. What is good practice on managing for results in HOs, given the specific nature of humanitarian assistance and the challenging environments in which it is delivered?
The study methodology involved analysis of findings from past MOPAN reviews, a literature review, key stakeholder interviews and brief case studies of four multilateral organisations – UNHCR and OCHA, which are primarily humanitarian, and UNICEF and FAO, which have mixed humanitarian and development mandates.
