Humanitarian Practice Network

02/06/2026

Accountability to affected communities (AAP) involves many things, including ensuring there are feedback and complaints mechanisms that enable two-way communication. These systems can help humanitarian organisations not only receive and respond to information but also learn from it and adapt their programmes accordingly.

Sarah Amulo, Ahmed Assayr Gelle, Abdihalin Abdifatah Reshid and Rehema Bashir Haji from Action Against Hunger Somalia reviewed their feedback and complaints mechanisms to better understand how men and women use these systems, why they prefer certain feedback channels over others and how their engagement affects outcomes.

The article highlights that as the reset pushes for greater efficiency, localisation and accountability, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. For example: a system that works well for women may simultaneously overlook men because of differing gender roles and livelihood patterns. The authors argue that to strengthen true accountability, effectiveness depends not just on a system's existence but on understanding exactly whose voices it amplifies.

Read the full article here.

This article explores why women engage more with feedback mechanisms and what this means for accountability, localisation and humanitarian effectiveness.

21/05/2026

In November 2025, devastating floods swept across North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Aceh provinces in Indonesia, killing people and destroying homes. At first, many assumed the floods were part of the usual seasonal pattern. But as rainfall intensified and the scale of destruction became clearer, it became evident that this was far more severe than expected.

Local actors were among the first to step in and fill gaps in the initial response. Seven months later, Stella Anjani, a humanitarian practitioner working on localisation and locally led response in Indonesia, reflects on what the floods revealed about localisation in practice.

Drawing on conversations with local responders, Stella explores questions around coordination, visibility, risk-sharing and public narratives. She argues that the floods in Sumatra are not unique in revealing these dynamics rather, they offer a timely reminder that localisation in practice is shaped as much by context as by design.

Read the article.

Reflections from the Sumatra floods on how local actors led the early response while navigating coordination gaps and political narratives.

19/05/2026

The humanitarian sector has been significantly affected by funding cuts with major implications for operational decision-making. In Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh), the Rohingya response is increasingly shifting from a broad coverage model towards a prioritised minimum service model – writes Abdul Mannan, Deputy Director at Society for Health Extension and Development (SHED).

So how are organisations managing funding shortfalls?

Abdul reflects on how organisations in Cox’s Bazar are responding to funding shortfalls and the difficult trade-offs that come with them.

Read the full article.

In Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, funding cuts are no longer only a planning concern. They are changing everyday operational decisions: how…

07/05/2026

Counterterrorism measures are intended to safeguard national security. While these measures are necessary, in contexts such as Niger – where counter terrorism alerts are high – they can create significant operational barriers for humanitarian and development actors.

In our latest article, Maria Luna Itriago, a humanitarian, development and political affairs specialist, explores how counterterrorism compliance measures are affecting agricultural livelihoods, climate resilience and humanitarian programming in Niger.

Read the article.

Exploring the impact of counterterrorism compliance on humanitarian and climate resilience programmes in Niger.

01/05/2026

📅 We’re excited to share the speakers for our upcoming webinar, Reform or Repeat, taking place next Wednesday 6 May in collaboration with the Start Network:

Amrita Paul - Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN)
Kulmiye Hussein - Somali Lifeline Organization
Bridget Osakwe (PhD) - The Feminist Humanitarian Network
Angelina Nyajima - Hope Restoration South Sudan
Samiullah Hamidee – Organisation for Social and Economic Development

🎤 Moderated by, Christina Bennett, Start Network CEO

🔗 Reserve your spot now: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/71tYPgf3TKuGq00Dq7NBNA #/registration

22/04/2026

It’s been a year since the launch of the humanitarian reset that committed to putting localisation, accountability and country-level leadership at the heart of humanitarian reform.

Join Start Network and HPN for a webinar, ‘Reform or Repeat’, bringing together local and national organisations to share honest reflections on what has or hasn’t changed and what must shift for the reset to move from promise to consequence.

📆 Date: Wednesday 6 May
⏱️ Time: 10:00AM (GMT +1)
🌍 Languages: The event will be available in English, Arabic and French
🔗 Register now: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/71tYPgf3TKuGq00Dq7NBNA #/registration

14/04/2026

In many humanitarian crises, we wait until a child is already undernourished before they can access support. But could we be doing more to prevent this in the first place?

In our latest article, nutrition experts Kate Sadler, Abigail Perry, Karima Al-Hada’a, Tamsin Walters, Rita Abi Akar, Gladys Mugambi, Rebecca Brown, Lena Cherotich and Gillian McKay, explore why prevention of undernutrition needs to be part of humanitarian response, not an afterthought. By using the existing program tools, the authors argue that the sector can stop children from falling into wasting in the first place.

Preventing undernutrition doesn’t replace treatment, it reduces the number of children who need it.

Read the article.

Humanitarian response must shift from a treatment-only approach to preventing undernutrition by integrating nutrition lenses into its programmes.

24/03/2026

For too long, the aid sector has prioritised international experts over local practitioners and yet local practitioners already have the networks, language skills and cultural understanding for effective response.

In our new article, Rita Abi Akar (public health nutritionist), Etel Godwill Fagbohoun (nutrition and food security specialist) and Alexandra Humphreys (localisation specialist) look at how the Global Nutrition Cluster is changing this by prioritising national expertise. From better coordination to faster trust-building with local partners, the benefits are huge. But it also highlights a major challenge: ensuring that national experts are treated with the same respect and provided the same fair pay as their international counterparts.

It’s time to move beyond the ‘lack of capacity’ myth and start valuing the expertise that already exists on the ground. Shifting power isn’t just about hiring locally, it’s about ensuring equitable pay, fair treatment and challenging the assumption that external expertise carries more weight.

Read the article.

This article explores the value of national expertise in humanitarian work, highlighting its role in improving effectiveness, trust and locally led response.

23/03/2026

⏳ Only 1 week left to apply!

We are looking for a research consultant to develop a Network Paper on Local Coordination Committees, exploring how they operate and contribute to humanitarian action.

If this speaks to your work or interests, we’d love to see your application.

📅 Deadline: 31 March 2026
🔗 Details of the consultancy are available here 👇

Network Paper on Local Coordination Committees The Humanitarian Practice Network (HPN), in collaboration with the Centre for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD) and partner networks including the Alliance for Empowered Partnerships (A4AP), the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN), and the Soma...

13/03/2026

📢 Consultancy opportunity

مركز المجتمع المدني & الديمقراطية C C S D, Alliance for Empowering Partnership, the Somali NGO Consortium and HPN are seeking a research consultant to develop a Network Paper on Local Coordination Committees (LCCs).

Across many crisis contexts, LCCs quietly play a critical role in organising aid, connecting communities with humanitarian actors and navigating complex local governance realities. Yet despite their importance, their structures, influence and contributions to locally led humanitarian action remain largely undocumented in the global evidence base.

To help address this gap, we are seeking a consultant to develop a Network Paper (10,000–20,000 words) exploring how LCCs operate across different contexts.

📅 Deadline: 31 March 2026
🌍 Remote consultancy
💰 Budget: USD 5,000–7,000

Full details of the terms of reference are available below.

If interested, please apply or feel free to share with colleagues and researchers working on humanitarian policy and practice.

Network Paper on Local Coordination Committees The Humanitarian Practice Network (HPN), in collaboration with the Centre for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD) and partner networks including the Alliance for Empowered Partnerships (A4AP), the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN), and the Soma...