ADVOCACY AND INFORMATION MANAGEMENT |
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Advocacy and Information Management Branch |
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Advocacy Section |
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Information Analysis Section |
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Information and Communications Technology Section |
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Advocacy Section
Advocacy is an indispensable tool for mobilizing political and financial support for humanitarian action. Speaking up on behalf of the civilians affected by disasters and emergencies is at the heart of OCHA’s mandate. To this end, OCHA seeks to create awareness of humanitarian issues among a wide range of audiences with the goal of raising the necessary political and financial support for humanitarian relief and giving voice to the voiceless. OCHA’s Advocacy and Public Information Section (APIS), located in New York, and the Advocacy and External Relations Section (AERS), located in Geneva, assist and support the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinators and other parts of OCHA in advocating for effective and principled humanitarian action at the global, regional and country levels. Both APIS and AERS promote advocacy on key humanitarian issues and work for the inclusion of humanitarian concerns in UN decisions and communications, as well as with Member States in their decision-making processes. They also ensure regular contacts between OCHA and the media, Member States, NGOs and academic institutions and support other OCHA branches in advocacy to various fora including regional organizations, the UN Security Council and General Assembly and other international and regional bodies critical to successful humanitarian action and response. OCHA’s first ever corporate advocacy strategy now outlines guiding principles, goals and results, as well as identifying key organizational priorities, including attracting attention to neglected crises, access to and protection of civilians, preparedness and response to natural disasters and strengthening the humanitarian identity. In 2006, APIS will roll-out the strategy, working with other HQ branches and sections, field and regional offices, and selected UN country teams to develop and implement humanitarian advocacy strategies and action plans. This will be done by direct support, as well as by building the capacity of key staff for advocacy work through training and the publication of guidelines and other support materials. In 2006, APIS and AERS will continue their extensive outreach to international, regional and non-traditional media, as well as their support to the ERC and other senior OCHA officials to advocate for issues of humanitarian concern. This will be done through increasing op-eds on humanitarian issues and interviews with the ERC, other senior OCHA officials, and OCHA public information (PI) officers with major media world-wide. APIS and AERS will similarly continue to provide critical PI support for sudden onset natural disasters and complex emergencies, as was the case in last year’s Indian Ocean Tsunami, Niger, Darfur, the South Asia Earthquake, and the Central American hurricane crises. APIS will further bolster PI surge capacity through the activation and expansion of OCHA’s first ever PI surge capacity roster, made up of an initial 21 United Nations PI experts from OCHA HQ and field offices, the Office for the Spokesman of the Secretary-General and the UN Department of Public Information. A PI emergency communications portable kit, field guidelines and a policy on administrative procedures for deployment will ensure that emergency PI staff are deployable for periods of up to four weeks. APIS will also finalize memoranda of understanding with selected Member States to ensure longer term PI capacity is available following the initial deployment. In addition, APIS will finalize an advocacy and PI preparedness and early response model tested initially in Latin America (natural disasters) and West Africa (escalating conflict Côte D’Ivoire) and build on and expand new partnerships with organizations such as the International Peace Academy and selected international NGOs for joint advocacy activities. Also in 2006, APIS will continue to make OCHA Online a major advocacy platform by exploiting its interactive features to host discussions on humanitarian issues and building on current donor solicitation mechanisms. OCHA Online and other OCHA web platforms will continue to highlight neglected emergencies, emerging crises and natural disasters. AERS will continue its work with European institutions and European-based regional organizations to promote the coordinating role of OCHA in humanitarian crises, including the implementation of the Humanitarian Response Review. The section will also ensure a structured and regular dialogue with members of the G-77 in Geneva, as well as key partners among the European NGO and academic communities. Partnerships with the private sector will be further strengthened within the overall framework as currently developed. APIS and AERS will also continue to strengthen and expand advocacy partnerships and support to regional organizations, the private sector, policy-making organizations, INGOs and academic institutions. Activities:
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