International Affairs U8690

Managing Complex Emergencies
SPRING 2002

Professor Dennis Dijkzeul 

Wednesdays 11:00-13:00 p.m. and by appointment, throughout the semester. Contact Dennis Dijkzeul by e-mail or at (212) 854-8825. In addition, Prof. Gerald R. Martone (Director of Emergency Response of the International Rescue Committee ¾ gerald@theIRC.org) will co-teach parts of this course.

Intro

During the last two decades, the world has witnessed an explosion of civil, ethnic, and religious conflicts. Over 50 million people have become refugees or internally displaced. Genocide, corruption, banditry, war economies, and famines have often overwhelmed our capacity to understand and cope with inhumanity. Complex humanitarian emergencies also have reverberated outside the immediate crisis area, for example, through regional instability, proliferation of arms, forced migration, and environmental degradation. A growing number of international organizations¾NGOs, UN organizations, military, bilateral development agencies, and so on¾have intervened in these complex emergencies.

The growth in the number and magnitude of complex emergencies has led to an increased interest among academics and practitioners in developing a better understanding of these conflicts. However, despite the proliferation of agencies involved in these emergencies, as well as a heightened level of academic attention to problems of theory and practice, the quality of action in humanitarian emergencies remains problematic. Too many interventions are marked by inadequate resources, poor agency performance, weak coordination mechanisms and little or no substantive involvement of the local populations in the programs set up to keep them alive. Conceptually, it has been difficult to explain and operationalize the linkages between security, relief, rehabilitation, and development.

Although there have been some recent efforts to improve the quality of humanitarian action, most notably through the efforts to establish minimum standards through the SPHERE Project, agency management practices are a consistent problem. Simply put, many agency staff do not have the skills necessary to properly manage programs within an increasingly complicated operating environment. There is little institutional memory or learning, and most organizations fail to cooperate sufficiently at the field level as they compete for funding and media attention. This course explicitly focuses on the management of the organizations that intervene in complex emergencies.

As an intellectual framework, this course will draw on management, development and microeconomic theory. It combines classes on managerial issues with substantive sessions on, for example, health and food. Wherever possible, case-based knowledge and real world problems will be used to tie theory to practice.

The overall aim is to help students with obtaining the professional skills and insight for working in complex humanitarian emergencies. In this way, students can contribute to the professionalization and critique of humanitarian organizations. This course focuses on the actual management problems of humanitarian interventions. It is a follow-up to the fall course that studied the broader context, root causes, actors, policy issues, and debates in humanitarian emergencies. Upon completing this course students should:

1. have a deep understanding of the managerial problems and possibilities of humanitarian intervention.

2. understand the importance of a long-term development perspective and local participation in humanitarian intervention.

3. know how to research, and where to find, relevant information on humanitarian emergencies, which is necessary to work in the field.

4. be able to assess shortcomings of current approaches to humanitarian affairs, as well as identify conceptual and practical managerial problems.

5. be able to place humanitarian interventions in the broader context of development cooperation and international politics.

6. understand the basic management principles and key organizational challenges in the key substantive fields of health, food, displaced people and demining.

Ideally, students should be able to comfortably impart specific skills that they have learned in this course to colleagues and staff in humanitarian organizations. In order to this, the students will form groups of about four people to write a scientific article together. This article will constitute an important part of the final grade. Ideally, the article will be published in a scientific journal, e.g., Disasters, International Peacekeeping, and Global Governance. The articles should fulfill the submission guidelines of the scientific journal that the group would like to submit its article to.

Students who want to take this class, must have successfully completed one or more of the following four courses:

·         P8687 Introduction to Forced Migration and Health, by Professor Ronald J. Waldman (fall 2000).

·         U6190 Humanitarian Emergencies: from Root Causes to Rebuilding, by Professor Dennis Dijkzeul (fall 2000).

·         U6760 Human Dimensions of Natural Disasters, by Professor Klaus H. Jacob, (fall 2000).

·         P8646 Humanitarian Assistance in Complex Emergencies: Policies, Plans and Programs, Professor Ronald J. Waldman (spring 2000).

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford.

NOHA (eds.) (1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum.

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford. This book can either be bought or downloaded.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition.

Van Brabant, K. (2000) Operational Security Management in Violent Environments, Good Practice Review, 8, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London.

Donini, A. (1996) The Policies of Mercy: UN Coordination in Afghanistan, Mozambique, and Rwanda, Brown Occasional Paper, 22, Watson Institute, Brown University, Providence, pp. 7-59, available at:http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Watson_Institute/Publications/index.html

Horwood, C. (2000) Humanitarian Mine Action: The First Decade of a New Sector in Humanitarian Aid, HPN Policy Review, 32, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, available at: http://www.odihpn.org.uk/pubs/net-ab32.html . To download this document, you need to get a free web membership to HPN. Click on HPN Publications, then on Network Papers, go to #32 and click on download. Then follow the instructions to sign up for your free membership.

Leader, N. (1999) Codes of Conduct: Who Needs Them? and Individual Codes of Conduct Examined: The Australian Council for Overseas Aid: Principles of Engagement for the Democratic Republic of Congo; The Sierra Leone Code; Evaluation of the NGO; Field Cooperation Protocol, RRN newsletter, 13, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, at http://www.odihpn.org.uk/newslet/newslet13/article1.html

Martin, R. (1999) NGO Field Security, Forced Migration Review, 4, 6 p. at http://www.fmreview.org/1frames.htm

NGO Field Cooperation Protocol (InterAction) (see course Web site)

Scott-Flynn, N. (1999) Coordination in Kosovo: The Challenge for The NGO Sector, RRN newsletter, 15, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, at http://www.odihpn.org.uk/newslet/newslet15/article4.html

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford. This book can either be bought or downloaded at: http://www.sphereproject.org/ (English, French, and Spanish versions).

A reader includes all articles and individual book chapters mentioned in this syllabus that are not part of the required books. The reader is available at The Village Copier, 601 W 115^th Street (between Broadway and Riverside Drive). Where indicated, material will be available on the Web. The required books (but not the reader) are available from Labyrinth Books at 536 W 112th Street (between Amsterdam and Broadway).

Anderson, M.B., and Woodrow, P.J. (1998) Rising from the Ashes: Development Strategies in Times of Disaster, Lynne Riener Publishers, Boulder.

Cahill, K. (ed.)(1999) A Framework for Survival, Routledge, London/New York, second edition.

OECD Development Assistance Committee (1998) Conflict, Peace and Development Cooperation on the Threshold of the 21st Century, Development Co-operation Guidelines Series, OECD, Paris.

OXFAM (1995) The OXFAM Handbook of Development and Relief, OXFAM UK and Ireland, Oxford (reprinted 1998, 3 volumes).

Uvin, P. (1998) Aiding Violence: The Development Enterprise in Rwanda, Kumarian Press, West Hartford.

Van Damme, W. (1998) Medical Assistance to Self-settled Refugees: Guinea 1990-1996, Studies in Health Services & Policy, 11, ITG Press, Antwerp.

Harrel-Bond, H.E., (1986) Imposing Aid: Emergency Assistance to Refugees, Oxford University Press. (Currently out of print, but available at http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Units/CDE/research/migration.html (Click on "Imposing Aid")).

Salama, P. (1999) The Psychological Health of Relief Workers: Some Practical Suggestions RRN newsletter, 15, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, at http://www.odihpn.org.uk/newslet/newslet15/article8.html

Several ODI Web publications (http://www.odihpn.org.uk) You may need a web membership, as for example with: "A Decade of Humanitarian Mine Action," by C. Horwood. HPN Paper #32. To download this document, you need to get a free web membership to HPN. Click on HPN Publications, then on Network Papers, go to #32 and click on download. Then follow the instructions to sign up for your free membership.

USAID, OFDA, Field Operations Guide at http://www.usaid.gov/ofda/fog/

Big PBS website with info about Fredy Cuny, including more essays:

Introduction of course: instructor, review of course objectives, outline of subjects to be covered, student responsibilities, grading, office hours, useful references, reading material, and explanation of assignments.

Relationship with other courses and programs within and outside the School of International and Public Affairs.

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford, pp. 1-46.

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford, pp. 1-12, 299-322.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 3-25.

Concepts of Management and Their Application to Complex Humanitarian Emergencies

Organizational Challenges and Structural Constraints

Management Functions: Leading, Planning, Organizing and Coordinating, Controlling

Each group has to hand in a proposal/set-up for its article in a selected journal.

Mintzberg, H. (1975) The Manager’s Job: Folklore and Fact, Harvard Business Review, (July/August 1975), pp. 49-61.

Walkup, M. (1997) Policy Dysfunction in Humanitarian Organizations: The Role of Coping Strategies, Institutions, and Organizational Culture, Journal of Refugee Studies, 1, pp. 37-60.

Weiss T.G., Pasic, A. (1997) Reinventing UNHCR: Enterprising Humanitarians in the Former Yugoslavia, 1991-1995, Global Governance, 1, pp. 41-57.

NOHA (1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 77-88.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 26-93.

Why Agencies Do Not Coordinate - Some Ideas from the NGO Coordination Literature and Microeconomic Theory

Attempts to Coordinate Through Codes of Conduct and Minimum Standards

Dijkzeul, D. (1997) 'The Management of Multilateral Organizations’, Kluwer Law International, The Hague/London/Boston, pp. 61-71.

Donini, A. (1996) The Policies of Mercy: UN Coordination in Afghanistan, Mozambique, and Rwanda, Brown Occasional Paper, 22, Watson Institute, Brown University, Providence, pp. 7-59.

NGO Field Cooperation Protocol (InterAction). See course web-site

NOHA (eds.)(1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 1-44, 61-66.

Leader, N. (1999) Codes of Conduct: Who Needs Them? and Individual Codes of Conduct Examined: The Australian Council for Overseas Aid: Principles of Engagement for the Democratic Republic of Congo; The Sierra Leone Code; Evaluation of the NGO; Field Cooperation Protocol, RRN newsletter, 13, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, at http://www.odihpn.org.uk/newslet/newslet13/article1.html

Scott-Flynn, N. (1999) Coordination in Kosovo: The Challenge for The NGO Sector, RRN newsletter, 15, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, at http://www.odihpn.org.uk/newslet/newslet15/article4.html

Each group discusses its paper and progress in its research. The other groups can make suggestions about literature, contacts, etc.

NOHA (eds.)(1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 77-88.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 290-338.

Logistics: The pipeline

Donor Policies & Food Aid

Minimum requirements and changing diets

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford, pp. 127-170.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 184-289.

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford pp. 59-116.

Setting up a Refugee Camp: The Initial Stages

Registration

Taxation

Payment of Extraordinary Fees

Policy Advice to Host Authorities

Conforming to Host Authority Protocols

Training Host Authority Officials

Incorporation in Project Design/ Implementation

Training

Pass Through Funding

NOHA (eds.)(1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 89-104.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 340-400.

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford pp. 117-161.

Craig, D. and Porter, D. (1997) Framing Participation: Development Projects, Professionals, and Organisations, Development in Practice, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 229-236.

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford, pp. 217-269.

UNHCR (2000) UNHCR Handbook for Emergencies, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, second edition, pp. 94-183.

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford pp. 47-58.

Médecins sans Frontières (2000) Refugee Health ¾ an approach to emergency situations, MacMillan Press, London, Chapter 10, Coordination, pp. 223-240.

Lee, J.B. (1999) Coordination of Health Relief: the Experience of the American Red Cross, in Leaning, J., Briggs S., and Chen. L.C., (1999) Humanitarian Crises ¾ the Medical and Public Health Response, Harvard University Press, 1999, Chapter 11, pp. 247-269.

Perrin, P. (1996) Handbook on War and Public Health, International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, Chapter 7: The Health-Care System, pp. 301-332.

Week 10, (March 25) Security (Randy Martin, Senior Director of Operations of the International Rescue Committee)

How to Think About Security?

Practical Issues - hostages, personal protection, armed guards and escorts

Van Brabant, K. (2000) Operational Security Management in Violent Environments, Good Practice Review, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, Ch. 1-6, 18-22.

Martin, R. (1999) NGO Field Security, Forced Migration Review, 4, 6 p. at http://www.fmreview.org/1frames.htm

Week 11, (April 1), Substantive Issue - Displaced People (Gerald R. Martone, Director of Emergency Response of the International Rescue Committee)

Camp Management

Self-settled Populations

Protection and/or Service?

Logistics

Brauman, R. (1998) Refugee Camps, Population Transfers and NGOs, pp. 177-195 in Moore, J. (ed.)(1998) Hard Choices: Moral Dilemmas in Humanitarian Intervention, Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Lanham.

Cuny, F.C. (1999) Famine, Conflict, and Response: A Basic Guide, Kumarian Press, West Hartford, reread, pp. 95-138.

NOHA (eds.)(1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 66-76.

The Sphere Project (2000) Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, First Final Edition 2000, Oxfam Publishing, Oxford, pp. 171-214.

Harrel-Bond, H.E., (1986) Imposing Aid: Emergency Assistance to Refugees, Oxford University Press. (Currently out of print, but available at http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Units/CDE/research/migration.html (Click on "Imposing Aid")).

Van Damme, W. (1998) Medical Assistance to Self-settled Refugees, Guinea, 1990-96, Studies in Health Services Organisation & Policy, ITG Press, Antwerp.

Horwood, C. (2000) Humanitarian Mine Action: The First Decade of a New Sector in Humanitarian Aid, HPN Policy Review, 32, Overseas Development Institute (ODI), London, available at: http://www.odihpn.org.uk/pubs/net-ab32.html.

The Reality of Aid

Operational Impact

Financial Accountability

Selection of: Reality of Aid, 2000, ECHO Annual Report, OFDA Report, and OCHA report.

NOHA (eds.)(1997) Management in Humanitarian Assistance, European Commission (ECHO), (European University Degree in International Humanitarian Assistance), Network on Humanitarian Assistance, Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, pp. 49-60.

Week 14, (April 22) Advocacy Guest lecture by Steve O’Malley (Humanitarian Affairs Officer for the Great Lakes Region, Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), United Nations, New York) on NGOs and Coordination Issues

Local Advocacy

Advocating on Behalf of the Local Population in a Complex Emergency

Advocacy towards UN, Governments, and NGOs

Bernath, T.D. and O’Malley, S. (2000/forthcoming) Mile 91 Case Study, Sierra Leone.

On this day, students should provide copies of their articles to other students in class.

Discussion of Papers in Class (Presentation and Group Discussion)

Discussion of Papers in Class (Presentation and Group Discussion)

Last year, several students wanted to write more in-depth papers. In addition, they asked to work in groups and to learn more about team management. Depending on the size of the class, we will have several groups of four people. Each group will write an article. The group members will select a topic and a scientific journal. Examples of journals include “Disasters”, “Global Governance”, “International Organization” and “International Peacekeeping”.

The course will end with two sessions in which the groups have to present the final version of their articles. These group presentations may lead to some final updates and alterations. The group has to submit the paper for approval to the selected scientific journal.

Group Manager

Develops and submits workplan detailing group responsibilities, outputs and schedules

Coordinates the group's work

Oral Presentation Team (2 or 3 members)

Presents 15 minute in-class briefing (15 minute talk, 15 minute Q & A's).

Written Report Team (3 or 4 members)

Outlines, researches and writes required reports and memos

Sign-up for groups during first class session. Students themselves have to form groups of four people.

Select scientific journal.

Schedule group meeting with Dennis Dijkzeul as soon as possible. The group will also need to discuss Dijkzeul’s role in the writing process, because

he will review substantively all articles;

if the article is submitted and approved, it normally requires some rewriting and additions on the basis of comments of the independent reviewer(s). This can only happen once the class has ended. Do you want Dennis to play a role in that process? Yes or no?

Identify group roles at first meeting.

Submit workplan for approval.

Present article in class in time and according to the journal’s submission guidelines.