Join the Global Prayer and Action Chain – sign the petition
COP 26, scheduled to take place in Glasgow, UK, this November, is a crucial moment in the fight for climate justice. Due to COVID-19, this COP has already been delayed a year. The time for countries to implement necessary and ambitious climate action is fading.
The petition will be presented to world leaders at a COP 26 public event. The more signatures there are from people around the world, the more impact it will have. It tells our world leaders that they must set ambitious targets in solidarity with the world’s most vulnerable people – those who are most affected by climate change. Governments must take urgent action to limit warming to 1.5C by cutting emissions and significantly increasing climate finance to the poorest and most vulnerable.
As people of faith, we believe that each person matters to God, and each deserves to be protected from climate change. We need everyone to join us in calling for climate justice. As well as distributing the petition, we encourage you to pray for climate justice. Sign up for the global prayer chain and join a Prayer Service for Climate Justice.
Jesus said, “if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.”
Together, we can persuade world leaders to put aside their differences and implement ambitious climate action.
Sign the petition today and join us to demand Climate Justice for All.
Haiti Earthquake Advocacy statement
On the 14th August a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck southwestern Haiti with devastating consequences. The passage of Tropical Depression Grace on the 17th of August worsened conditions on the ground and increased the level of humanitarian need. As at the 22nd of August more than 2,200 fatalities have been reported, at least 344 people are missing, over 12,000 people have been injured and upwards of 130,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed (OCHA sitrep 22 Aug).
Per the UN System in Haiti, 650,000 people need emergency humanitarian assistance in the three most affected departments (Sud, Grand’Anse and Nippes). The Haitian Government has declared a month-long state of emergency and underlined the need for food and psychological support. There is an urgent need for additional human and financial resources to rapidly scale up response efforts to match the scale of needs.
Based upon programmatic learnings following emergency responses to the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016, Christian Aid has issued an advocacy briefing. Christian Aid and the ACT Alliance secretariat are highlighting the following recommendations to donors and international actors:
Donors should act fast and step up their efforts both in terms of quantity but also to deliver multi-year and quality of funding to address the earthquake crisis and its long-term recovery.
Given the multi-sectoral nature of the crisis it is vital that the humanitarian community and donors moves in the direction of longer-term more holistic funding; that better integrates different sectors, phases, and dimensions of Haitian recovery. It must involve community philanthropy, religious leaders, and private sector in a nexus approach.
Donors must continue to invest in disaster risk reduction programmes in order to strengthen national, local and community preparedness towards multiple risks. Reconstruction should focus on this type of long-term intervention instead of short-term fixes.
The UN and other INGOs should abide by their Grand Bargain commitments and support local agency by working through to strengthen and not replace, national and local civil society who will continue the reconstruction efforts in the long term. It is of fundamental importance to include local civil society and local government departments in decision making processes and coordination systems as well as to ensure access to quality funding, such actors can work in a more culturally sensitive way, based upon their strong knowledge of the context. Practices such as survivor and community led response have shown the benefit of giving agency to affected population being fast, bespoke and therefore efficient and sustainable, strengthening mutual help and solidarity within the community whilst also providing important psychosocial recovery.
Insecurity remains a major challenge facing humanitarian actors across all sectors. Access constraints and a volatile security context mean the delivery of humanitarian assistance is being hampered. High quality programmes, including essential protection and GBV programming and reconstruction and livelihoods programmes, central to the long-term recovery of affected communities, can only be delivered by humanitarian actors, in line with humanitarian principles, as part of a safe scale up of the planned response involving the Haitian authorities, UN actors and NGOs.
The first round of presidential elections is scheduled for the 07th of November. The Haitian Government is leading the co-ordination and scale up of multi-sectoral response efforts in all quake-affected areas. The provision of critical humanitarian assistance must not be hindered by political instability.
With extensive damage to homes and infrastructure, large numbers of people remain displaced and without shelter.C-19 remains a virulent and dangerous risk to the wider population. Without strong preventative messaging by all actors involved in the humanitarian response to raise awareness of C-19 there is a significant risk that the situation facing affected populations could significantly worsen.
No sustainable humanitarian relief without preparation for climate change
ACT Alliance members respond daily to humanitarian crises all around the globe – from building shelters for people who lost their homes to earthquakes or floods, to providing life-saving WASH infrastructures , to helping those in need with cash assistance.
The crises that members are asked to respond to are growing in number and intensity and many of those emergencies are climate-induced disasters. The evidence is overwhelming: climate change will influence our work even more in the future.
The climate emergency humanity is facing is and will have severe consequences on the foundations of human life, namely on water supply and on crops, putting millions of people at risk of severe malnutrition. The fight for water and land could aggravate existing larger scale conflicts and lead to political instability and mass migration.
Affecting everyone, but harshest impact on those already vulnerable
Climate change knows no border. The recent floods and wildfires in Europe and the drought in California are clear examples that nobody is and will be spared by the consequences of not reaching the Paris Agreement ambitions.
However, the harshest consequences of climate change affect vulnerable societies with limited resources the most – thus those who are already subject to poverty, conflict, and violence.
On the occasion of the World Humanitarian Day on August 19, ACT Alliance-member Community World Service produced a number video testimonies of people in Pakistan’s southern province of Sindh who are experiencing intensifying heat and exceptional drought which are already impacting their food supply systems.
The voices of these people, recorded by the CWSA team, are a cry for help and a warning to politicians, but also to those working in the humanitarian field. Climate change is and will exacerbate humanitarian crises, and humanitarian relief planning must include a climate perspective and prepare for what is coming.
This can only be done in cooperation with local communities, making sure that every crisis is also an opportunity for them to become more resilient to future natural and man-made disasters.
«We are experiencing water scarcity due to increasing warm weather and lack of rains. Our crops and cattle are dying as a result of the shortage. We have to plant more trees and plants in our villages and overcome this negative impact of climate change.” (Pathani, community member, Umerkot, Pakistan)
«There have been no rains in the area, and the pollution from the brick production is severely damaging our ecosystem. Because of our agricultural activities, we are extremely reliant on rain and livestock. Our communities and livelihoods are being negatively impacted by changes in rainfall patterns.” (Hakin Chan, community member, Umerkot, Pakistan).
“CWS Asia provided water harvest tanks to our village. Due to a lack of water, we collect rainwater and store it in the tanks which we subsequently use to irrigate our kitchen gardens, wash clothes, and feed cattle. Brine water is harmful to both humans and cattle. Therefore, rainwater conservation is assisting us in coping with water shortage in our area.” (Chandi, kitchen gardener, Umerkot, Pakistan)
“We did not have access to safe drinking water. CWS Asia constructed a Reverse Osmosis plant (water purification system) in our community which has supplied residents with sweet water to drink. We are now safe from the health risks by polluted, brine water in our area. We are also engaged in kitchen gardening to provide our families with nutritious home-grown veggies, resulting in improved health and forestation.” (Marwa, kitchen gardener, Umerkot, Pakistan)
“Previously, we cooked on traditional mud-built stoves with a single burner that produced a continuous plume of smoke. Out health was suffering as a result of spending so much time in the kitchen. Using fuel-efficient stoves, on the other hand, has decreased health hazards since we don’t burn our hands and less smoke is produced. We use less wood, resulting in less deforestation in our vicinity.” (Seeta, housewife, Umerkot, Pakistan)
Major devastation and high human toll feared after 7.2 earthquake hits Haiti
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the south of Haiti at 8:29am on Saturday, 14 August. The earthquake was also felt in other Caribbean islands, like Jamaica and Cuba. This earthquake was stronger than the 2010 quake that devastated the nation’s capital of Port-au-Prince.
Although estimates of the destruction, casualties, and the full impact on lives and livelihoods are still developing, our ACT Haiti Forum reports that the magnitude of the impact has been devastating and hospitals are overwhelmed. The latest reports from the Haiti civil protection report more than 1200 deaths and 5700 wounded in the South department, specifically in the Nippe and Grand-Anse areas. More than 14,000 families have been affected in the three departments.
The ACT Haiti Forum and their partners are engaging in immediate needs assessments and coordination. They have issued an alert on the situation, which is available here.
Destruction hinders relief operations
Thousands of houses have been damaged or destroyed, and approximately 60% of the population has been affected, according to the civil protection forces based in the south of the island. Some routes of communication, as well as infrastructure including roads have also been damaged, which will affect the relief operations. Some communities are now only accessible by air or boat due to roads damaged or blocked by the earthquake or the subsequent landslides.
Many aftershocks are making the situation worse and more unstable. The government fears this earthquake could be worse than the one that hit Haiti in 2010. Further exacerbating the situation, Haiti is currently in the direct path of Tropical Storm Grace, which is expected to make landfall between 16 and 17 August, exposing an already vulnerable population to tropical storm-force winds and heavy rain that could trigger life-threatening flash floods and landslides.
ACT Forum coordinates response
The ACT Forum met on Sunday 15th August with partners and members on the ground to assess the situation and an alert which will be shared with ACT members. Tents and shelters have already been installed at the OFATMA Hospital and deployment of volunteers to help with rescue operations and assess the damage.
The ACT Forum members are working synergically to support each other and meet the immediate needs of the population affected by this tragedy. The initial interventions will focus on distribution of shelter kits, WASH activities and distribution of water as well as psychosocial support.
Haiti Forum Co-chair Prospery Raymond said, “In the Haiti Forum, we have spent more than two years supporting our partners and some communities to include Survivor and Community Led Responses in their ways of working. SCLR allows people to be the leaders in humanitarian response, ensuring that the work of ACT members is appropriate and effective, and respects the needs, expertise, and leadership of those affected by this disaster.”
The humanitarian situation might worsen due to the weather conditions. Tropical Depression Grace is expected to provoke heavy rainfall which could lead to flash flooding in Haiti, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic.
ACT Alliance is currently monitoring the situation and is supporting local partners to carry out rapid needs assessments in affected areas. Emergency teams are preparing to be deployed. The forum plans to raise an appeal pending their needs assessment analysis.
Immediate needs
The ACT Haiti Forum reports the following immediate needs:
Tents and tarpaulins, temporary shelters, flashlights, emergency power generators;
hygiene kits, clothes, water, and food; first aid kits;
Health workers, rescuers (at least 10 people per municipality affected);
Fuel, vehicles, mobile phones, and SIM cards
Key contacts to support the relief operations in Haiti
ACT has set up two WhatsApp groups to keep members apprised of the developing situation. The first is aimed at humanitarian specialists and can be joined by emailing your WhatsApp details to Carlos Rauda, Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean (carlos.rauda@actalliance.org). The second is for communications and fundraising efforts and can be joined by emailing your WhatsApp details to Simon Chambers, Director of Communications (simon.chambers@actalliance.org).
Any funding indication or pledge should be communicated to the Head of Humanitarian Affairs, Niall O’Rourke (niall.orourke@actalliance.org) and Director of Operations, Nancy Ette (Nancy.ette@actalliance.org), with copy to the Finance Officer, Marjorie Schmidt
(Marjorie.schmidt@actalliance.org).
One year after the Beirut blast Lebanon is facing a deep crisis
The 4th of August 2020 was a dark day for Beirut and Lebanon. All ACT Alliance member organisations in Lebanon have been affected by this tragedy and have friends and families who sustained injuries and damage to their homes and businesses. The explosion came at a time when the country was and continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic and the worst economic crisis ever experienced, with more than half the population living under the poverty line.
The extent of the devastation left us all shocked.
220 people were killed by the blast, more than 6,500 were injured, including 1,000 children, and approximately 300,000 households were damaged (UNOCHA). 200 schools (UNICEF), the country’s most important grain silos and at least 15 medical facilities, including three major hospitals,have been affected with damage estimated at around $5 billion.
ACT Alliance members in Lebanon responded individually and through a joint emergency appeal that managed to help more than 60,000 people affected by the emergency. However important these actions were to help meet the immediate needs, these efforts are not enough. People continue to struggle economically but also psychologicallywith processing the traumatic events of that day. The ACT Alliance family remains focused on supporting each other and the people we serve, while hoping that justice will contribute to the healing process of the families of the victims.
ACT response to the Beirut blast
ACT members came together immediately after the Beirut Port Explosion.The Forum launched the LEB201 emergency appeal that served 61,111 people between 1 September 2020 and 31 March 2021.
In partnership with six local organisations, the appeal provided the following services:
1 Hospitalrestored
23,519 People received immediate shelter and non-food items
9,673 People received food assistance
2,309 People received post-injury treatment, physical rehabilitation, medication, and home care
28,668 People received access to hygiene products including dignity kits, cleaning materials and COVID-19 PPE
1,433 People received access to MHPSS services, including GBV survivors, either through centres or home services
45 Businesses received early recovery assistance
100 Children received electronic devices and emergency school kits in preparation for schooling
5,583 People received unconditional cash assistance
LAUNCH OF LEB211: Humanitarian Response to the Beirut Explosion and Overlapping Crises in Lebanon
Going into its third year of severe economic recession, Lebanon faces its worst and hardest depression ever since the end of the Lebanese Civil War that lasted 15 years. Lebanese people are facing intersecting and multiple crises: the Syrian refugee influx crisis, widespread street uprises, the COVID-19 pandemic, a dangerous depletion of resources, and finally the Beirut Port Explosion that left the country in shock. All these crises are putting Lebanon on the edge of collapse.
Despite a decade-long rate of 1,507.5 LBP to the dollar, the black-market value of the USD is now above 20,000 LBP, which indicates a reference of the currency’s real worth and Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). Central Bank reserves are going dry and shortages in goods and materials are increasing. The loss of purchasing power is dramatic and mostly felt by those who earn in Lebanese Lira and have no other sources of income in foreign currencies. In 2020, Lebanon’s average inflation rate soared to 84.8 percent, the highest since 1992. The end-of-year inflation (December 2020 relative to December 2019) stands at 145.8 percent with the price of food and non-alcoholic beverages increasing by 5 times and the price of clothing and footwear increasing by 6.6 times.
Today and as the black-market USD to LBP exchange rate is still increasing, inflation is peaking.
People are suffering and going hungry. Layoffs, wage freezes and wage cuts are all results of the ongoing political conflict that is not expected to end in the near future. With stressors adding up, poverty in Lebanon is likely to continue to worsen in 2021. UNESCWA estimates reveal that more than 55% of the country’s population is now trapped in poverty and struggling for bare necessities. These changes have contributed to disrupting people’s psychological well-being with symptoms of emotional distress, anxiety and hopelessness on the rise.
The cash-strapped Lebanese government and Central Bank are running out of resources to keep subsidising the country, a full lift would compound the country’s already alarming hyperinflation. The situation is bleak: Lebanon is already rationing fuel. Fuel rationing has led to longer power outages across the country even during daily working hours, with many pharmacy and bakery owners fearing they soon will have to close up shops. It has become commonplace to see long lines on the streets near gas stations. Customers in grocery stores are fighting over what’s left of subsidised food and basic staples, and stocking up on whatever they could find, as they fear additional price spikes. Also, the pharmaceutical crisis has deepened in Lebanon as the central bank is unable to meet the cost of subsidised medicines.
These supply problems have had a crippling effect on the Lebanese healthcare system. Anaesthetics are among the medicines that have been in short supply, causing operations to be postponed, and medicines for heart diseases, diabetes, epilepsy, and other non-communicable diseases are also lacking.
When subsidies fully stop, prices, poverty and conflict will increase much further. If this happens, observers, including the United Nations and NGOs, have warned of a disaster.
These intersecting crises have disproportionally hit and affected vulnerable groups and disadvantaged communities, such as female-headed households, children, youth, older people, the LGBTIQ+ community, people with disabilities, refugees and migrant workers.
One year after the Beirut Blast, the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Lebanon needs global solidarity. As thesituation is escalating in the country, the ACT Lebanon Forum has launched a new two-year long LEB211 Appeal: Humanitarian Response to the Beirut Explosion and Overlapping Crises in Lebanon, covering Greater Beirut on one hand and Lebanon’s other seven governorates on the other.
The ACT Lebanon Forum (ALF) is a shared platform and space comprising local Lebanese and international NGOs – ACT members who are engaged in Lebanon and the MENA. The ALF currently includes two local ACT members: The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) and Department of Service for Palestinian Refugees – Joint Christian Committee (DSPR-JCC) and seven international members: Diakonia Sweden, DanChurchAid (DCA), Norwegian Church Aid (NCA), Finn Church Aid (FCA), Swiss Church Aid (HEKS-EPER), Act Church of Sweden (CoS), and Christian Aid (CA).
ACT members in Lebanon continue to respond to the needs based on their sector focus, country strategy and in coordination with local partners and relevant external actors.
Vaccine Equity Now: ACT Alliance’s Perspectives on the Global Divide
Boxes of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine provided through the global COVAX initiative arrive at the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia Monday, March 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)
ACT Alliance members are reporting from all over the world about devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 4 million people have died, and millions have had their livelihoods disrupted, throwing more 120 million people into poverty, according to the World Bank.
At the time of writing, a third wave of Covid-19 transmission is hitting the world. There is a sharp change in the transmission curves, and many countries struggle with a sharp almost vertical peak in transmission. Countries that are particularly hard hit include South Africa, Uganda, Indonesia and Honduras- four countries in which ACT members are serving their communities.
In the middle of this desperate situation, ACT members also report on a vibrant civil society, in which they are part, that provides basic services and that continues to raise its voice despite worrying reports of civil society voices being curbed during the pandemic.
Wide scale vaccination is still not in reach for most of our members in the south. ACT members engaged in health care are front line workers in Tanzania, Sudan, Palestine, Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia, upholding primary care clinics and running health services, filling gaps in the national health system. They report that they are in the prolonged acute phase, not seeing the end of the tunnel yet. Pessimistic analysis argues that many of these countries will only have significant vaccine coverage in 2023, if then.
More than 3,5 billion vaccine doses have been administered around the world. Of these, less than 1% have been administrated in low-income economies.
ACT forum dialogues
In May and June 2021, the ACT secretariat arranged a series of consultations with ACT forums in all regions. We shared and discussed the ways in which ACT members are engaged in the response to the pandemic, the status of access to vaccines in their communities and what we want to influence and change.
ACT Alliance’s General Secretary, Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, was named as a civil society representative to the COVAX Facility, COVAX being the mechanism set up by World Health Organization and key stakeholders to make possible equitable distribution of vaccines. Through consultations and dialogue, ACT Alliance can report back to decision-makers on the lived experiences of our members and the wider civil society community.
The conversation illustrates the many different contexts in which our members live and serve. Every country is different and has its specific challenges in the response to COVID-19. Some concerns are shared even if they naturally play out in different ways in their local contexts.
Lack of vaccines
First, there is a lack of a steady and predictable supply of vaccines in low-income countries, causing slow vaccination progress. ACT members are asking what more can be done to increase production and share the doses that are available, so that all countries can start the tremendous and complex operation of vaccinating their population.
When there is a lack of vaccine supply, existing inequalities are exacerbated. Our members report that there is a divide between urban and rural areas. People in rural areas have less information about the national vaccination plans and where and how to access a vaccine. While the cities in low-income countries lack vaccines, the rural areas have even fewer.
False information
Second, there is a major challenge in most countries with false information. It is spread in many ways, by social media and phone groups, by word of mouth, but also by state leaders, politicians, official media and by religious leaders.
While religious communities and their leaders have been a source of false information, there are also examples of religious leaders being part of the solution. In countries where trust in government is low, religious leaders are considered a reliable source of information. In Ethiopia and Uganda, religious leaders have supported health messaging by talking on radio and on TV.
Many ACT members have been part of the COVID-19 response as church related organizations often play a crucial role in health service provision. While members have run health services during the pandemic, witnessing the COVID-19 patients and many of their deaths, there might not be safe spaces to speak up, and official numbers of cases and deaths do not match the observations of our members. Lack of accountable governance feeds rumors and misinformation.
Concerns with inequality and exclusion
A third shared topic is the issue of who gets tested, and who has access to vaccines and medical care, and how vulnerable groups will have protection and support. Who the priority and vulnerable groups are differs from country to country, as countries have chosen to prioritize vaccine access very differently.
In the Latin American consultation, the issue of migrants and indigenous peoples were prominent, illustrating how existing inequalities or vulnerabilities will play out in the COVID-19 response.
There has also been an issue with individuals buying vaccines. Our Honduran members report that the vaccines are available for purchase for those who can afford it. Similarly, in the Middle East, the wealthy could, early on, fly to Gulf States and buy a vaccine months before any vaccines arrived in their own country.
In Asia, issues were raised with people not having ID cards required to register for vaccination, the elderly in particular. In the Middle East, with a large number of internally displaced people and refugees, the people of concern do not trust their host country, or might not trust their own governments, leading to lower vaccination rates among– for example– Syrian and Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.
Weak health systems and social services
Members report that it is not only vaccines that are lacking. Primary health clinics in many rural areas were poorly equipped and staffed even before the pandemic hit. South Africa has seen health workers and civil society protests as the health budget has been cut, and many community health workers have been laid off at a time where they are more needed than ever. Weakness in the health systems was revealed not only in low-income countries but also in middle-income countries including South Africa, Peru, Brazil, India and Indonesia, the latter now representing the epicenter of the pandemic in Asia.
Malawi and South Sudan lack qualified health staff, particularly in rural areas. There is a lack of vaccines, but even more, a lack of basic health infrastructure that can provide information, collect reliable health data, offer testing and vaccines, as well as care for patients. However, in many countries there is a lack of basic PPE for health workers, and treatments such as oxygen for patients.
Vaccine hesitancy
In countries with low trust in government and the health system, vaccine hesitancy is spreading. Vaccine acceptance depends on good information from trusted sources.
Vaccine hesitancy is also fueled by the lack of vaccines. When few have taken the vaccines, fewer can convince their neighbours that the vaccine is safe. Also, as many members report, when some vaccines are not approved in European countries, but they continue to be the main vaccine available in the Global South, people ask why it would be safe for them.
ACT members in many countries have supported their governments in reaching out with information. Some ACT members have worked with the churches in their countries to disseminate information, and religious leaders have been contributing though radio and TV to ask the population to take the vaccine to protect themselves and their community. Health Communication has included the other public health advice: to keep social distance and to wash hands.
In Tanzania– a country with very few official Covid-19 cases– the church-based organizations have been important though their prominent role in the health system. They have experienced first hand the volume of COVID-19 cases because they have set up emergency wards in the hospitals, and have informed the population of how to protect themselves by other means than vaccines.
Ways forward Religious leaders will play a key role in the year to come in countering false information and helping communicate to the population what they can do to protect themselves. The many members contributing on the ground delivering health services are preparing themselves for a protracted crisis. None of us is safe until all of us are safe.
ACT Alliance has prepared a vaccine equity brief, available here, which reflects the common priorities identified in the consultations and suggests ways forward to ensure that all may be vaccinated as quickly as possible.
And ACT Alliance will continue to raise its voice and its efforts to make that happen as swiftly as possible.
Gudrun Bertinussen is the Senior Advisor for Global Health in Norwegian Church Aid.
Cash transfers cushion the COVID-19 blow in Uganda
In Uganda, unconditional cash transfers proved to be much more than emergency financial support.
As part of the ACT Alliance global response to COVID-19, the Church of Uganda received $100,000 USD in Rapid Response Funds from ACT which they have used to fund health education around COVID-19, community hygiene stations, and cash transfers for over 1000 vulnerable households around the country.
Broadcasting messaging about COVID-19 and GBV
Right from the beginning of the lockdown, the Church of Uganda used radio and television broadcasts to share science-based, factual information and health advice across the country, with Archbishop Dr.Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu warning people on a nationally broadcast church service in March 2020 that “COVID-19 kills. Stay safe!”
The information sharing from the Church of Uganda quickly expanded to include information and messaging about working to end gender-based violence, providing dioceses with megaphones to help them spread anti-GBV messages far and wide.
Cash transfers- a new experience for the Church of Uganda
As part of the Rapid Response Fund received from ACT Alliance, the Church of Uganda distributed money to 21 of the 37 dioceses in the country for cash transfer work. The regions chosen were those that had not been receiving food aid and other supports from the government, which tended to go to urban areas.
1065 families each received 100,000 shillings (about $28 USD) to spend with no conditions.
“For us, as Church of Uganda, this was not what we had anticipated,” said Josephine Ninsiima, the project coordinator. “We thought that people would buy food, but people decided to use the money according to the need they had at the point where the money was given. This has made the project impactful in many ways. When you look at the different places and communities, we have different stories of how people use the money. Some used it for household basic needs, others used it for treatment, others used it for farming. It is a whole lot of things, we found out.”
Sebastian Bamuliwa used the money to lease land for three gardens, and buy inputs to grow crops. “The harvest will feed my family,” he said, “and I shall raise an income from the remaining harvest.”
“Mum received 100,000 shillings and bought a piglet so that she can raise my school fees out of the project,” said one student. “We raised it, and it produced these three young ones.”
Some families received the money in cash, but others on their mobile phones. “We were extremely excited to see that 100,000 shillings were deposited on the mobile phones on the various people in my place,” said Ven. Rev. James Kivunike, Archdeacon Muterere, Busoga Diocese.
Benefits of cash transfer
The families who received the unconditional cash often make the money go much further than it would if they simply bought food. Their creativity and resourcefulness help the money to support the families for months into the future.
ACT Alliance has been supporting cash transfer as a method of meeting people’s needs in humanitarian responses for several years now. “By giving people the money they need, it allows them to make the purchases that will be most helpful to their family at that time,” said Elizabeth Kisiigha Zimba, ACT Alliance’s regional representative for Africa. “It also helps to support the community by allowing people to make purchases from local merchants, buying items that are appropriate and useful in their individual contexts. Therefore, a single cash transfer creates a wider impact that goes beyond the individual household recipient.”
Rt. Rev. George K Turyasingura, Bishop of East Rwenzori Diocese summed up the value of the project, “This programme came in at the right time, and the people were so grateful to receive voucher help… I would like to extend my sincere thanks to ACT Alliance, who came in at this time when we most needed it.”
ACT Alliance, WCC accompany open letter from DiPaz to the UN Security Council
Diálogo Intereclesial por la Paz en Colombia (DiPaz), an ecumenical organistion working for dialogue for peace in Colombia, is calling on the international community to urge the Colombian government to resume the full implementation of the peace agreement and strengthen channels of dialogue to resolve societal issues in an open letter to the UN Security Council on July 13, 2021.
The letter was accompanied by a letter from ACT Alliance and the World Council of Churches (WCC) in solidarity with DiPaz, supporting the call for a sustainable peace in Colombia.
The letter expresses gratitude to UN General Secretary António Guterres, the Security Council, and the UN Verification Mission in Colombia for their support promotion of the peace process, and in appealing for continued and further action to continue to build a genuine and lasting peace for all the people of Colombia.
“Nevertheless, the current national administration’s omissions and slowness to act in relation to the implementation of many points of the agreement continue to worry us, as does the lack of progress in fulfilling other agreements with communities and sectors of civil society which, together with the increase of poverty during the pandemic, gave rise to the nationwide protests and strike action that began on April 28 of this year,” reads the letter.
The letter notes violence against young people protesting, as well as towards Indigenous people, as particular areas of concern: “During the recent protests we observed how state forces acted disproportionately against the young people who took to the streets to raise their voice… In addition, there was significant stigmatization of indigenous peoples, evidence of the persistence of racism in Colombia.”
DiPaz offers several recommendations, including the verification of all verdicts in the rulings to be issued by the Peace Tribunal of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), Monitoring the application of the differential and gender perspective of the Final Agreement to End the Conflict and Build a Stable and Lasting Peace, and the promotion and verification of the implementation of Security Council resolution 2532, calling for a global ceasefire in the face of COVID-19, “urging especially the Colombian government and all armed groups still active in Colombia to embrace such a ceasefire as an urgent ethical necessity for the advancement of the peace process and to enable the provision of humanitarian aid to rural communities ravaged by the violence and the virus.”
Tigray: Mutable conflict situation paints a stark picture of what is yet to come
This week the situation in Tigray entered a new and dangerous phase. Following the unilateral ceasefire declared by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the conflict seems to have regained strength, as forces from northern Tigray have crossed into the neighbouring Afar region.
The eight-month-old conflict has left the country with a collapsed government infrastructure, a distorted market, and millions of people in need of assistance.
When the Ethiopian army left Mekelle in June the humanitarian situation was already dire. Agencies and church-based organisations faced many difficulties to reach communities in need and limited resources made the delivery of food and non-food items extremely problematic. According to the IPC Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, in May-June 2021 5.5 million people were facing critical food insecurity with more than 500.000 people facing extreme and catastrophic consequences.
The severe food crisis is the result of the cascading effects of the conflict which include displacement, loss of harvest and livelihood and limited humanitarian access.
ACT Alliance’s members have been on the ground to support with the delivery of emergency shelters but also providing those who lost everything in the conflict with unconditional cash transfers and psychological support. But the supplies fall short of the immense needs of the people of Tigray.
On top of a global pandemic and a conflict that is ravaging an already fragile situation, the lack of access to water, hygiene and sanitation services puts the population at risk of disease outbreaks, including water-borne diseases.
To pre-empt a new health catastrophe, through our appeal, ACT Alliance is working to rehabilitate water points and provide those in needs with chemical latrines.
The Lutheran World Federation has for instance worked on drilling a water supply system to help those who are living in makeshift IDP camps spread out in 23 schools and colleges in Mekelle.
“The situation is worsening by the day” said Niall O’Rourke, Head of Humanitarian Affairs at ACT Alliance. “The numbers we are receiving from our members in the field give us a stark picture of what is yet to come. If action is not taken the situation will further deteriorate”.
ACT Alliance supports call for new guidance on support to civil society
Churches and other civil society actors need freedom and space to act for justice, like in this Climate Strike in New York City. Photo: Simon Chambers/ACT
Why is donor support for civic space so important?
The dramatic shrinking of civic space worldwide has become even more apparent since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic 2020. Many governments have disproportionately restricted the civil liberties of their citizens during the crisis. They have violated freedom of expression, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly; they have excluded those affected from participation processes and have expanded surveillance.
Without space for civil society to act, development cannot reach everyone and reduce inequalities. The negative effects of shrinking and closing space do not only affect civil society organisations and their beneficiaries. They massively harm the political, social and economic development in countries, impacting the entire population. Strong and independent civil society organisations are the engine of social and political development. Together with people at the grassroots, they represent a future that focuses on justice, peace and environmental protection. An agenda which seeks to fight corruption, prevent outbreaks of violence, or initiate post-conflict reconciliation processes.
On 6 July 2021, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – Development Assistance Committee (OECD – DAC) decided on on its Recommendation on Enabling Civil Society. The OECD-DAC represents 30 state members, including many of the largest aid donors. Its aim is to promote development co-operation, and it is particularly important in setting standards for donor countries in providing aid. The specific aim of the OECD – DAC Policy Instrument is to give guidance to its members, the most important state donors, on how to support civil society actors worldwide.
Donor countries can play a crucial role in protecting and enabling civil society space worldwide. The way donor countries support civil society in their partner countries can make a huge difference for civil society and their space, and can also influence civil society’s role in future development.
What are important recommendations of civil society?
Through the DAC-CSO (civil society organisations) Reference Group, civil society actors from the Global North and the Global South were able to be involved in the process through several consultations. Among many other civil society organisations and networks, the ACT Alliance and its members have been actively involved and provided comments and suggestions on how donor support to civil society should look. This entails:
Implementing specific measures to support an inclusive and independent civil society and fully advance the respect, protection and promotion of open civic space.
Supporting, including financially, civil society as development actors in their own right;
Respecting human rights in donor partnerships with the private sector, where private sector initiatives may undermine community development and harm human rights defenders;
Enabling laws and regulations that recognise CSOs as actors that have a positive impact on terrorism prevention;
Promoting and investing in the leadership of local/national civil society actors in partner countries or territories.
For civil society worldwide, it is of particular importance that the DAC passed the Policy Instrument as an official Recommendation to give it the leverage that it deserves. Although OECD Recommendations are not legally binding, they are official legal instruments and have traditionally had great moral force and there is an expectation that OECD members will do their utmost to implement them. This hopefully means that more donor countries in future will do more to better support civil society and their space.
Christine Meissler works as Policy Advisor on Civil Society for Brot für die Welt and is also Coordinator of the ACT Alliance Community of Practice Human Rights in Development.
Link to the Recommendation: 