A brief history
In March 1999, the Government of Japan and the United Nations Secretariat launched the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security (UNTFHS) under the management of the Office of the UN Controller. Since the primary concern of the UNTFHS at that time was to ensure that people had secure livelihoods and therefore were able to recover from sudden economic downturns, such as the Asian currency crisis in 1997, the majority of resources were directed towards developmental concerns including such key areas as health, education, agriculture and small scale infrastructure development.
Meanwhile, at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000, the UN Secretary General called upon the international community to advance the twin goals of "freedom from want" and "freedom from fear." As a contribution to this effort, an independent Commission on Human Security (CHS) was established. After two years of deliberation, the Commission submitted its final report, entitled Human Security Now, to the UN Secretary General in May 2003. Based on the recommendations of the CHS, an Advisory Board on Human Security (ABHS) was created to promote human security and advise the Secretary General on the management of the UNTFHS.
The ABHS held its first meeting on 16 September 2003 and agreed on new priorities for the UNTFHS which included among others: producing concrete and sustainable benefits to specific target populations; using the “protection and empowerment” framework; addressing the multi-sectoral demands of people in situations of insecurity; integrating responses by the international community; working together with civil society organizations; and avoiding duplication with existing initiatives.
In 2004, the UN Secretary General transferred the substantive management of the UNTFHS from the Office of the UN Controller to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and established the Human Security Unit (HSU) in OCHA. The overall objective of the HSU is to place human security in the mainstream of UN activities. By combining the management of the UNTFHS with dissemination and promotion activities on human security, the HSU plays a pivotal role in translating the concept of human security into concrete activities and highlighting the added value of the human security approach.
Further to the activities of the ABHS, UNTFHS and the HSU, the 2005 World Summit and the decision by the General Assembly to further define the notion of human security have been critical in raising awareness and interest in the concept of human security. In paragraph 143 of the 2005 World Summit Outcome, the Heads of State and Government recognized that “all individuals, in particular vulnerable people, are entitled to freedom from fear and freedom from want, with an equal opportunity to enjoy all their rights and fully develop their human potential”. Subsequently, Member States of the United Nations have agreed to further discuss the notion of human security. Drawing input from a number of Governments as well as intergovernmental organizations, civil society groups, scholars and other eminent individuals, human security is gaining wide support in the United Nations and beyond.
Objective
The objective of the UNTFHS is to finance activities carried out by UN organization(s) and/or designated non-UN organization(s), which translate the human security concept into practical actions, in particular those at the field level, to demonstrate its added-value in view of promoting and disseminating the concept.
Projects to be supported by the UNTFHS
a) Operational projects which apply the human security concept and advance its operational impact by meeting criteria specified in section IV (1) and (3) of the Guidelines.
b) Projects aiming to promote and disseminate the human security concept which meet criteria specified in section IV (2) and (3) of the Guidelines.
Key Funding Criteria
1. In developing operational projects, applying organizations are requested to utilize the tools provided in the Human Security Handbook and meet the following criteria:
a) Providing concrete and sustainable benefits to vulnerable people and communities threatened in their survival, livelihood and dignity.
b) Implementing the “Protection and Empowerment” framework by comprehensively including both top-down protection and bottom-up empowerment measures.
c) Promoting partnerships with civil society groups, NGOs, and other local entities and encouraging implementation by these entities.
d) Advancing multi-sectoral integrated approaches that take into account the people-centred, comprehensive, context-specific and prevention-oriented aspects of the human security concept.
e) Promoting, to the extent possible and necessary, inter-agency cooperation based on the comparative advantage of the applying organizations so as to advance the operational impact of the project.
f) Concentrating on those areas of human insecurity that are currently neglected and avoiding duplication with existing programmes and activities.
g) Having a pilot and innovative nature which could be replicated in other regions or countries through other sources of funding.
h) Including a component designated specifically for the dissemination of the concept of human security.
2. In developing projects aiming to promote and disseminate the human security concept, applying organizations are requested to meet at least one of the following criteria.
a) Promoting and facilitating the application of the human security concept through:
i) Strengthening outreach to non-intergovernmental international fora; or
ii) Enhancing cooperation with regional organizations; or
iii) Improving collaboration with civil society and non-governmental actors.
Such projects may enhance the capacity of these entities to formulate and implement human security projects.
b) Contributing to the formulation of concrete and action-oriented initiatives to address specific human security challenges.
Focus of Implementation
a) Projects shall be distributed globally with priority given to countries and regions where insecurities of people are most critical and pervasive, such as the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and countries in conflict and post-conflict peace-building situations.
b) Sub-regional projects that involve more than one country and aim to address cross-border threats to the border communities shall be considered with special attention.