On the 11th of September 2020, Francesco Michele of WeWorld-GVC spoke in a panel hosted by NOHA, titled The Triple Nexus and the Challenges of Setting Boundaries to Humanitarianism, for the international students of the NOHA + joint Master’s programme in International Humanitarianism. Emphasizing the need to center local responders and their contextualized solutions to complex crises, Francesco outlined the main challenges of applying Nexus commitments in the field, while identifying what the key determinants are for an operational modality that strives for more coherent, inclusive and effective humanitarian action.
Speaking together with Dr. Phil Connors of Deakin University and Roger Gutiérrez Salgado of MSF, the purpose of the panel discussion was to explore the practicalities of the Nexus agenda, and how humanitarian actors face operational and political constraints in the process of adjusting to the new ways of working. In particular, the growing politization of humanitarian action; how the Nexus can be used as a vehicle for political interests and for aid organizations to re-examine their role potentially perpetuating continued imbalances of power.
The speakers also touched on the opportunities that the Nexus presents aid actors with, especially in joint data collection and sharing, incorporating multi-annual planning and funding mechanisms, as well as learning from the best practices of local responders, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic outbreak. The Nexus both highlights the shortcomings of humanitarian and development interventions with the need to integrate new approaches, and presents challenges that humanitarian actors must address in order to uphold the principles of assisting the most vulnerable. To watch the lecture in full, please follow the link.
For further information write to cpa@gvc.weworld.it, and follow us on our social networks #cpainitiative