Global Nutrition Cluster

Cross-cutting issues

© UNICEF/NYHQ2011-1764/Pirozzi

Age
Gender
Environment
HIV/AIDS
Mental Health / Psycho Social Support
Early recovery
Disability

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) established four cross-cutting issues as part of the humanitarian reform agenda in 2005: age; environment; gender; and HIV/AIDS. In addition to these, other areas have been accepted as being important to integrate across humanitarian planning and response.

These include the integration of early recovery into projects and cluster / sector response plans, an approach to make the gains of humanitarian action more sustainable, as well as paying attention to other, often neglected, vulnerable groups, including persons with disabilities; ensuring adherence to human rights standards and affording protection to affected populations in all sectors (with special reference to sexual and gender based violence) and mental health and social well-being.

Age
At the request of the request of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Working Group, HelpAge International facilitated an inter-agency review of proposed IASC actions in relation to meeting the needs of older people in humanitarian response. The recommendations of this review were endorsed by the IASC Working Group and member agencies were requested to incorporate the recommendations into their work, with the support of HelpAge International where appropriate. The IASC also committed to circulate the recommendations to global cluster leads and the chairs of the IASC subsidiary bodies.

HelpAge International has a vision of a world in which all older people fulfill their potential to lead dignified, healthy and secure lives. HelpAge International is a global network striving for the rights of disadvantaged older people to economic and physical security; healthcare and social services; and support in their caregiving role across the generations.

Key documents:

• Nutrition interventions for older people in emergencies [pdf]. It is meant to encourage humanitarian workers to assess and treat malnutrition in older people. It also highlights older people’s vulnerability to malnutrition in emergencies.
• Protecting and assisting older people in emeregncies [pdf] .
• Ensuring inclusion of older people in initial emergency needs assessments [pdf]. The aim of this guidance is to ensure that the specific vulnerabilities and capacities of older people in emergencies are fully taken into account as part of a thorough gender and age analysis of humanitarian needs. It can be utilised whether agencies are engaged in coordinated assessments through the Multi-cluster Initial Rapid Assessment (MIRA) methodology or whether they carry out individual assessments applying any of the different existing methodologies within their organisations.

Gender
Gender equality in humanitarian action is simply about good programming. It is about effectively reaching all segments of the affected population.

Women, girls, boys and men play different roles within the family and community, and have different levels of access to power and resources. They are differently affected by, and find different ways of coping with, emergency.  Humanitarian actors must therefore design programmes to meet the needs of young and old, male and female, and ensure that all have safe and equal access to humanitarian assistance. To achieve this, all groups must be consulted and actively participate in needs assessments and decision-making processes.

Understanding gender differences, inequalities, and capacities and responding to them, improves the effectiveness of humanitarian actions. The IASC Sub-Working group on Gender and Humanitarian Action works to support the mainstreaming of gender equality programming in humanitarian action.

Key documents:

• The IASC Gender Handbook in Humanitarian Action is a tool for clusters/sectors to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate its programmes with a gender lens. It is available in English, Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and Farsi [pdfs]. Gender and nutrition in Emergencies [doc], chapter from the Hanbook.
• The Gender Marker is a tool that measures whether or not a humanitarian project is designed well enough to ensure women/girls and men/boys will benefit equally or if it will advance gender equality.
• Nutrition Gender Marker Tip Sheet with recomendations on gender marker for nutrition programming.
• The IASC Gender Standby Capacity (GenCap) project seeks to build capacity of humanitarian actors at country level to mainstream gender equality programming, including prevention and response to gender-based violence, in all sectors of humanitarian response. GenCap consists of a pool of gender advisers at a P-4/ P-5 level to be deployed on short notice as an inter-agency resource to support the UN Humanitarian/Resident Coordinators (HC/RC), humanitarian country teams and cluster/sectors leads, in the initial stages of sudden-onset emergencies as well as in protracted or recurring humanitarian situations.
• IASC Gender GBV and PSEA Guidelines [pdf] - leaflet with brief overview of all IASC Gender, GBV and PSEA guidelines.
• ADAPT and ACT [pdf] - Flyer on the Adapt and Act Framework for Gender Equality Programming in Humanitarian Action.
• Guidelines for Gender-based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Settings. The IASC GBV Guidelines is afield-friendly tool on how to set up a multi-sectoral GBV programme stressing the need for a coordinated approach. It is available in English, French and Spanish [pdfs].

Environment
Disasters and conflicts, as well as relief and recovery operations, impact the environment in ways that threaten human life, health, livelihoods and security. Failure to address these risks can undermine the relief process, causing additional loss of life, displacement, aid dependency and increased vulnerability. Disaster managers and humanitarian workers can take action to avoid this.

Key documents:

• The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has developed an online Resource Centre on Mainstreaming Environment into Humanitarian Action to make existing guidelines, tools, training, and other resources regarding environment, humanitarian action and early recovery easily accessible.

HIV/AIDS
Conflicts and natural disasters, when combined with displacement, food insecurity and poverty, can lead to humanitarian emergencies that have the potential of increasing the vulnerability to HIV infection among affected populations and disrupt vital AIDS services. AIDS has been identified as a multisectoral, cross cutting issue within humanitarian responses.

Key documents:

•  In 2003, the Inter Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Task Force developed the IASC Guidelines for HIV/AIDS Interventions in Emergency Settings [pdf], which contains a section on food security and nutrition.
• Guidance material, thematic information & contacts / links

Mental Health / Psychosocial Support

The IASC website has a dedicated to mental health and psychological supprt web-page with all IASC relevant documents.

Key documents:

• The IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) in Emergency Settings (available in seven languages) were launched in September 2007. These Guidelines reflect the insights of practitioners from different geographic regions, disciplines and sectors, and reflect an emerging consensus on good practice among practitioners.

Early recovery
In a humanitarian setting, the populations affected by the crisis require life-saving support; their communities, institutions and livelihoods have often been physically destroyed and weakened. Early Recovery programming works to restore services, livelihood opportunities and governance capacity, beginning as early as possible during the emergency phase.

Key documents:

• The Cluster Working Group on Early Recovery has developed a Guidance Note [pdf] outlining the principles of Early Recovery and their integration in ongoing activities.

Disability
Overall, persons with disabilities do not have equal access to basic services and often experience exclusion from humanitarian interventions. During crises and dis-placement, discrimination is often worsened. Recent experience shows the relevance of adopting a Twin-Track approach aimed at mainstreaming disability into all areas of humanitarian and development practice and supporting specific disability initiatives to empower per-sons with disabilities.

Key documents:

• Disability Checklist for Emergency Response: Adapted from Disability Task Force [pdf]