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Self Report 2018

The self-report on WHS Commitments below is organized according to the 24 transformations of the Agenda for Humanity. It is based on commitments pledged at the time of report submission. Click on the 'Expand' symbol to expand each section and read the reporting inputs by transformation.

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  • 1D
    Develop solutions with and for people

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Oxfam commits to partner closely with women's rights organizations on peace and security, including support for their strategic engagement in peace talks, mediation and resolution.


    • Partnership
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    In 2017 Oxfam created a baseline for its work with Women’s Rights Organisations (WRO). The data shows Oxfam is partnering with 34 WROs in 15 countries on the following topics:

    • peace and security,
    • gender-based violence,
    • women's empowerment and participation,
    • humanitarian preparedness and response,
    • disaster risk reduction

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • By applying processes/indicators developed to measure WHS commitments specifically.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    A new reporting template was developed which allows Oxfam to collate data more effectively; work linking with its work on Charter for Change and advocacy/campaign teams; (ongoing) confederation wide mapping of WROs. The template will improve monitoring against World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) commitments.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Data and analysis
    • Information management/tools
    • Other: Discrepancy in definitions/terminology
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Reporting is affected by discrepancy in data received from countries; information management tools developed for current reporting period are not sufficient to report back on all questions; confusion and differences in how WRO is defined in different tracking systems and in different countries.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    • Completion of the mapping of WRO organizations
    • Systematization of terminology
    • Database cleaning
    • Improved internal reporting process
    • Improved coordination with local and national women’s and women-led organizations to give women and girls stronger voices, space and funding for engaging in global agenda on Women Peace & Security (WPS)
    • More local and national women activists being supported to participate in global and regional WPS discussions
    • Ongoing work of Oxfam’s working group on WPS and strategy development.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Facilitate WROs and networks’ access to decision-making at national and international levels; build capacity and support to women to participate in reconciliation and national peace activities (local, national, international)
    • Increase understanding of inclusive peace processes from women’s perspectives by using New Ways of Working (NWOW) mechanism. Support will be provided on NWOW to lead to adoption of processes that integrate the concerns of women and girls into plans emanating from the NWOW process.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    • Research report on funding flows to local/national humanitarian actors.
    • Secured funding for research on the role of WROs in local humanitarian action, expected to generate good practice examples for the coming year. Research to be informed by interviews with WROs exploring roles and barriers in their work (women, peace and security, DRR, response).

    Keywords

    Disaster Risk Reduction, Gender

  • 2B
    Ensure full access to and protection of the humanitarian and medical missions

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Oxfam commits that all evaluations of Oxfam's humanitarian responses in conflict-affected situations assess their impact on civilian protection and its learning are publicly shared with other humanitarian actors.


    • Policy
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Oxfam will reiterate the centrality of protection in all its humanitarian action and proactively act to reduce violence, coercion and abuse against civilian populations, including all forms of GBV and ensure respect for IHL.
    • Advocacy
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

    • Oxfam will train all Oxfam humanitarian staff to understand protection - including knowledge of IHL and the IASC Guidelines on GBV - and to possess the basic skills, capacities and tools necessary to help increase the protection of civilians, and continue to increase investment in community-based protection programmes.


    • Training
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

    Core Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to ensure all populations in need receive rapid and unimpeded humanitarian assistance.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Commit to promote and enhance efforts to respect and protect medical personnel, transports and facilities, as well as humanitarian relief personnel and assets against attacks, threats or other violent acts.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Since 2017 Real Time Reviews done in every large crisis Oxfam responds to measure compliance with safe programming and proactive measures taken to avoid causing harm, conflict sensitivity, and compliance with humanitarian principles. 7 out of 44 countries reported to have evaluated the impact on civilian protection.

    Oxfam has 33 protection programmes in 19 countries and about 140 protection staff. Protection outputs were included in strategies of 31 countries. Activities include protection analysis, referrals, information dissemination, safety kit distributions, local advocacy, cash for protection, capacity-building of partners and local authorities, facilitating access to legal aid for victims of gender-based violence (GBV).

    Oxfam shares its learning widely, through events and reports posted on Alnap or its own Policy & Practice website. The Protection Guidance Note published in February 2017 describes what Oxfam does to bring about greater protection for civilians in conflict and disasters. Oxfam helped write the International Committee of the Red Cross' (ICRC) Professional Standards for Protection.

    During 2017 staff in 25 countries were trained; the Protection Team developed an induction course on protection and GBV, but it is not yet mandatory.

    A training package for humanitarian organizations on managing programme data was launched. Oxfam now has more ways to collect, store, share, transmit, analyze and publish data. With new legal frameworks and increased attention to ethics of data management, humanitarian organizations are adopting new data management policies. But policy alone is not enough; there is a need to practice responsible data management (RDM). The training pack include: principles of RDM, planning processes that can be used, and handling unexpected issues.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    A centrally-located protection team keeps a strong global overview of protection work across Oxfam, through field deployments, evaluation reports, and listening to others. At a well-established annual Protection Peer Group meeting, staff and partners share experiences and lessons, consolidate efforts, and develop future strategy.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Buy-in
    • Data and analysis
    • Funding amounts
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    While safe programming has largely been mainstreamed, buy-in across Oxfam into the centrality of protection versus the humanitarian imperative to save lives is not uniform. Staff - including management - still lack understanding of protection. The commitment to training all staff in protection also needs to be resourced and prioritized.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    2018 is likely to be a difficult year; funding constraints will affect the size of the team and its ability to implement strong protection programmes. The team will put additional effort into influencing other technical areas of Oxfam to make protection a central aspect of public health and food security work.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Oxfam is actively promoting and participating in a collective approach to protection, and recommends the ICRC’s Professional Standards for Protection for all non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and human rights groups as an easy reference to the minimum standards
    • Oxfam participates in the Global Protection Cluster and Protection Working Groups to build compliance with International Humanitarian Law and refugee law.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    • The “Protection in Practice project” published in 2017 demystifies protection for other technical areas.
    • The UK DEC (Disasters Emergency Committee) publicly praised Oxfam for approaching the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh as a protection crisis.
    • Lighting versus GBV work in Nigeria, Iraq, Uganda, and Bangladesh has made explicit links between protection and public health work.

    Keywords

    Gender, Protection, Quality and accountability standards

  • 2D
    Take concrete steps to improve compliance and accountability

    Individual Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Oxfam commits to ensure all humanitarian responses are informed by an ongoing protection analysis, including analysis of GBV, and that all relevant strategies include actions to prevent and respond to all forms of violence and abuse including GBV (for example through facilitating survivor referrals to specialist and emergency services).
    • Operational
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Oxfam commits to provide policy staff in each crisis to help influence national governments and others, including on protection.
    • Advocacy
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

    Core Commitments (4)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to promote and enhance respect for international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and refugee law, where applicable.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Commit to speak out and systematically condemn serious violations of international humanitarian law and serious violations and abuses of international human rights law and to take concrete steps to ensure accountability of perpetrators when these acts amount to crimes under international law.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Implement a coordinated global approach to prevent and respond to gender-based violence in crisis contexts, including through the Call to Action on Protection from Gender-based Violence in Emergencies.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Fully comply with humanitarian policies, frameworks and legally binding documents related to gender equality, women's empowerment, and women's rights.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity Leave No One Behind
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Gender-based violence prevention and response

    Safe programming/protection mainstreaming is incorporated in country response strategies. It is the responsibility of all humanitarian staff, but protection staff provide additional technical support through specific trainings to different sectors (water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), Emergency Food Security and Vulnerable Livelihoods (EFSVL)) and continuous advisory support.

    In big responses during 2017 such as Lake Chad, Horn of Africa drought, Central African Republic, Haiti, Syria, Bangladesh etc, protection staff carried out the initial risk analysis of activities and actions plans to ensure safe access to WASH, EFSVL, Cash and Protection activities.

    Nevertheless, it is important to reinforce the message that safe programming is the responsibility of all, particularly at management level. Facilitating access to GBV survivors though referrals is one of the key activities of protection programming, and this activity is incorporated in all responses.

    IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability

    Oxfam deploys policy staff into crisis teams to influence local, national and international levels as appropriate. Currently there are seven policy staff engaged in seven emergencies at country level, and 22 engaged at various strategic locations (Geneva, New York, Addis Ababa, Brussels, Washington) supporting the policy work.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Oxfam’s Real Time Reviews (done in every large response) include safe programming as a key criterion for measuring programme quality, ensuring any weakness in this area is identified and addressed quickly. Oxfam’s advocacy efforts are reflected in international and national agreements, statements and actions by governments and international bodies, which validate its success levels.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Buy-in
    • Funding amounts
    • Human resources/capacity
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Safe programming/protection requires efforts from all programme staff.  Where management doesn't prioritize it, responsibility falls 100% to protection staff who only have an advisory role. There is not yet complete understanding of safe programming. Influencing governments and others requires long-term engagement. Oxfams's own coverage is limited by funding availability and sufficient civic space.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    Safe programming has been identified by Oxfam humanitarian management as a priority for 2018.

    Oxfam is shifting its campaigning and advocacy model to include more national actors in its campaigns. Oxfam will support and continue to advocate for the protection of civilians from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    Despite collective commitments to protection the aid sector lacks sufficient technical expertise in this area to uphold the commitment across other technical areas. It also requires significant attention/funding from donors.

    As civic space shrinks, Oxfam and other humanitarian actors must fulfill their commitment to decentralization, local leadership and networked influencing wherever possible. Protection of women and girls should remain as an area of focus with more capacity and resources allocated to it.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    Research with Water Engineering and Development Centre (Loughborough University) on links between GBV and lighting, and solar lighting distributions or installations in Iraq, Nigeria, Uganda, Bangladesh.

    Keywords

    Gender, IHL compliance and accountability, Protection

  • 2E
    Uphold the rules: a global campaign to affirm the norms that safeguard humanity

    Individual Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Oxfam commits to campaign for better monitoring and improved compliance with international humanitarian law in all relevant crises
    • Advocacy
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Oxfam commits to increase its engagement with national human rights organizations as its partners and contribute to specific campaigns to uphold international humanitarian law.

    • Partnership
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

    Core Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to promote and enhance respect for international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and refugee law, where applicable.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Oxfam believes every human being is entitled to a life of dignity and opportunity, and it works with others worldwide to make this become a reality. Oxfam contends that protection of civilians is not only their right, but is essential for building long-term peace and stability.  Responsibility for the protection of civilians lies with states, and all parties to conflict must abide by International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

    In conflict situations Oxfam advocates for states to uphold their obligations to protect civilians, which includes ensuring civilians have access to life-saving food and medical assistance with maintenance of hygiene and public health.

    Oxfam maintains that humanitarian assistance should be provided by impartial civilian agencies under coordination of the United Nations (UN). Oxfam also maintains that peace keeping troops receive sufficient training on IHL and establish an independent mechanism to monitor IHL compliance.

    Oxfam works with national human rights organizations in Yemen, Syria, Jordan, Turkey, South Sudan, Nigeria, the Central African Republic (CAR) and Bangladesh to support and complement efforts to uphold IHL.

    Oxfam is leading the ‘Stand as One’ regional campaign in Europe calling on world leaders to uphold IHL and support refugees. Oxfam works with 5 International NGOs in Geneva on Global Compacts.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Six-monthly monitoring and evaluation reports outline core indicators to track progress on these commitments, in particular the number and quality of partnerships at national level, and progress towards better monitoring and improved compliance with IHL in relevant crises. When needed, Oxfam conducts specific evaluations of large pieces of work.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Field conditions, including insecurity and access
    • IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Recognition of IHL lies with the parties in a conflict, and a deterioration of security situations has led national governments to be less receptive to messaging around it. Global compacts on refugees and migration are not yet adopted, while shifting geopolitics and funding interests can hinder reform processes.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    Globally, Oxfam will focus on advocacy around Compacts on Refugees and Migrants. Locally, Oxfam will partner more with human and women’s rights organizations and allocate funds for building their capacities to participate in decision-making. Doing so, Oxfam plans to systematically gather information on whether Duty Bearers are complying with their obligations under IH and refugee law; and to deepen the understanding of root causes of humanitarian issues.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    IHL should not be tacked onto political processes but be intrinsic to them. Safeguarding human rights not only helps protect civilians and reduces suffering, but lends legitimacy to peace processes.

    Safeguarding lives and livelihoods enhances the prospects for peace and a renewal of political process. All governments must end security or military support, including the transfer of arms, that could facilitate violations of IHL, and declare support for the Code of Conduct regarding the Security Council action against genocide.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    Premature returns of Nigerian refugees from Cameroon were stopped in June 2017 due to heavy facilitation of Oxfam. Oxfam advocated against the forced movements of refugees, focusing on UN targets. The Tripartite Agreement was reached between Nigeria, Cameroon and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), countries have committed to facilitate returns while respecting human rights.

    Keywords

    Displacement, Humanitarian principles, IHL compliance and accountability, Protection

  • 3A
    Reduce and address displacement

    Individual Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Oxfam commits to substantially increase its investment in campaigning, along with other civil society organizations, to uphold the rights of displaced people, refugees and migrants, and for all countries to take a fair share of global responsibility for supporting and hosting them. This includes to campaign for concrete commitments by governments on access to livelihoods, work and education and for rich countries to welcome significantly more refugees than they have done to date, in the run up to the UN Summit on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants in September 2016 and beyond.
    • Advocacy
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Oxfam will advocate for the integration of protracted displacement and durable solutions in national development plans, including in poverty reduction strategies and UN Development Action Frameworks in line with Agenda 2030, as well as in peace negotiations and agreements.
    • Advocacy
    • Leave No One Behind

    Core Commitments (5)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to a new approach to addressing forced displacement that not only meets immediate humanitarian needs but reduces vulnerability and improves the resilience, self-reliance and protection of refugees and IDPs. Commit to implementing this new approach through coherent international, regional and national efforts that recognize both the humanitarian and development challenges of displacement. Commit to take the necessary political, policy, legal and financial steps required to address these challenges for the specific context.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Commit to promote and support safe, dignified and durable solutions for internally displaced persons and refugees. Commit to do so in a coherent and measurable manner through international, regional and national programs and by taking the necessary policy, legal and financial steps required for the specific contexts and in order to work towards a target of 50 percent reduction in internal displacement by 2030.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Acknowledge the global public good provided by countries and communities which are hosting large numbers of refugees. Commit to providing communities with large numbers of displaced population or receiving large numbers of returnees with the necessary political, policy and financial, support to address the humanitarian and socio-economic impact. To this end, commit to strengthen multilateral financing instruments. Commit to foster host communities' self-reliance and resilience, as part of the comprehensive and integrated approach outlined in core commitment 1.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Commit to collectively work towards a Global Compact on responsibility-sharing for refugees to safeguard the rights of refugees, while also effectively and predictably supporting States affected by such movements.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Commit to actively work to uphold the institution of asylum and the principle of non-refoulement. Commit to support further accession to and strengthened implementation of national, regional and international laws and policy frameworks that ensure and improve the protection of refugees and IDPs, such as the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol or the AU Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala convention) or the Guiding Principles on internal displacement.
    • Leave No One Behind
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Refugees

    Under its Displacement Campaign banner; Oxfam is tackling negative discourse on displacement, to prevent regression of hard-won rights and help ensure actionable commitments are made towards protection of migrants. This is done through advocacy and lobbying in Geneva, New York and London, during in/formal consultations on the Plan of Action of Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). Oxfam advocated for women’s rights, local leadership, and responsibility-sharing to improve the lives of refugees during the development of GCR.

    Oxfam also lobbies European Union institutions to ensure that migration policies result in increased support for displaced populations. Oxfam works in Greece, Serbia and Italy delivering legal counseling and protection support (248,790 people helped so far). Oxfam launched campaigns in Cambodia and Philippines, and produced communications’ packages for World Refugee Day, United Nations General Assembly and International Migrants Day.

    Cross-border, disaster and climate related displacement

    From November to December, as invited by the Special Rapporteur on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Oxfam provided its experience to help craft the communication strategy for commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Guiding Principles (GP20).

    Oxfam with five non-governmental organization (NGO) partners organized several events during the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) High Commissioner’s Dialogue in December to advocate a joint position on influencing the first draft of the Programme of Action.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • By reporting to, or using reports prepared for, UN principal organs, UN governing boards, or other international bodies
    • Other: By reporting to, or using reports prepared for, UN principal organs, UN governing boards, or international bodies through joint statements.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Oxfam, with 14 NGOs, tracks progress of GCR from text provided by UNHCR, and sets up a ‘steering group’ (document criteria for future iterations).

    Oxfam tracks actions against The EU Migration Agenda (reinforcing external borders and common asylum policy, developing a new legal migration policy and reducing irregular migration incentives).

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Data and analysis
    • Funding amounts
    • IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    • Lack of funding for projects and lack of capacity in the global team.
    • Border restrictions and forced returns increase protection risks for migrants, and Oxfam’s influence is not always sufficient.
    • Correlating advocacy to impact is not an exact science.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    Oxfam will launch national campaigns in EU member states to shift public attitudes, beliefs and behaviour of societies towards displaced people, and to influence domestic and regional policies (ie. the Kampala Convention). Our responses will focus on leaving no one behind.

    On Global Compacts, Oxfam will aim at creating a responsibility-sharing mechanism for protection of refugees, addressing movement of displaced people by climate-change, and, promoting the profile of and protecting the rights of IDPs.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    Governments must act by providing aid to tackle the causes of crises that result in forced movements. Political leadership is needed to bring an end to conflicts. Under the displacement campaign, Oxfam demands that Europe ends violations of international law and ensure safety and dignity for people on the move.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    • At UNHCR’s dialogue on Protection Challenges, Oxfam hosted a side-event “Five ambitions for Global Compact on Refugees” (discussion on durable solutions with concrete proposals)
    • Oxfam called on the international community, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and EU to insist on full implementation of relevant UNSC resolutions on Syria and of the 2012 Geneva Communiqué.

    Keywords

    Displacement, Migrants, Protection

  • 3D
    Empower and protect women and girls

    Individual Commitments (4)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Oxfam commits to seek to ensure that at least 30 percent of its staff in each crisis are women.
    • Policy
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Oxfam will ensure all humanitarian responses are informed by gender and GBV analysis and include targets and indicators to measure improvements in the situation of women and girls, including adequate training on the Oxfam Gender in Emergencies Minimums Standards and the IASC GBV Guidelines.
    • Operational
    • Leave No One Behind

    • Oxfam will increase financial support and level of engagement with women's rights organizations to engage in humanitarian preparedness, response and influencing - beginning with an analysis of Oxfam'€™s current support for women's rights organisations to establish specific markers.


    • Financial
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Oxfam will support women and men in ways that contribute to the transformation of gendered power relations in humanitarian settings.
    • Operational
    • Leave No One Behind

    Core Commitments (4)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Empower Women and Girls as change agents and leaders, including by increasing support for local women's groups to participate meaningfully in humanitarian action.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the Outcome documents of their review conferences for all women and adolescent girls in crisis settings.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Ensure that humanitarian programming is gender responsive.
    • Leave No One Behind
    • Fully comply with humanitarian policies, frameworks and legally binding documents related to gender equality, women's empowerment, and women's rights.
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity Leave No One Behind
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Tracking gender parity in individual responses is currently very difficult. Oxfam’s Confederation is made up of 17 organizations with separate Human Resource databases. Oxfam GB (the largest affiliate) makes a regular diversity report that reports an average of overseas-based staff as 40% women; this is a significant but by no means total picture.The short contracts and high turnover in response teams further contribute to this being very hard to measure.

    Gender equality and women’s empowerment in humanitarian responses is a central objective in Oxfam’s strategic priorities.Oxfam is a key member of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Gender Reference Group (IASC-GRG) and supported its revisions to the IASG Gender Handbook.It is also an active member of the IASC gender-based violence (GBV) Guidelines Implementation Group.

    In 2017, 29 out of 44 country teams which trialed a new reporting format reported working on programmes seeking to transform gender relations, and 34 have strategies for mitigating the risk of GBV. They also calculated transfers of approximately 1,700,000 Euros to support Women's Rights Organisations (WROs’) engagement in humanitarian settings, specifically on peace and security, GBV, empowerment and participation, preparedness and response as well as Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). These statistics will contribute to a baseline from which to measure improvements in the future.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • By applying processes/indicators developed to measure WHS commitments specifically.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Oxfam adapted reporting tools to include specific monitoring information on country-specific data and continues to work to adapt and systematize reporting systems. The mapping of Oxfam's current work with WROs will help ensure progress on commitments is leading towards desired outcomes.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Data and analysis
    • Human resources/capacity
    • Information management/tools
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    • Delays in data collection and lack of common data source over-complicates how Oxfam monitors progress.
    • The proliferation of siloed gender and GBV-driven initiatives risks having multiple poorly resourced and disjointed efforts.
    • More work will be done to improve integration of emergency and development activities to achieve a more cohesive approach.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    • Further improvement and systemization of internal monitoring tools.
    • Determine best ways to collect data related to gender parity in Oxfam's responses from countries.
    • Completion of the WRO mapping and analysis which will help determine how Oxfam partners with WROs.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Roll out the revised IASC Gender Handbook, the IASC gender policy and its accountability framework to ensure all humanitarian interventions further gender equality by addressing the strategic, as well as the practical, needs of men, women, boys and girls.
    • Engender the Grand Bargain and the Charter for Change.
    • More direct funding to WROs and support to grassroot women’s networks and movements.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    Oxfam implemented a research project in Pakistan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Dominican Republic to increase the capacity of humanitarian organisations to provide gender sensitive responses. It found that combining leadership training with Gender in Emergencies (GiE) is new and appropriate; training enables the creation of country action plans.

    Keywords

    Disaster Risk Reduction, Gender

  • 4A
    Reinforce, do not replace, national and local systems

    Individual Commitments (8)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • By 2017, Oxfam will adopt, use and monitor the Core Humanitarian Standard to make humanitarian action more appropriate, effective, and responsive to the needs of people and communities affected by crises.
    • Policy
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • By May 2018, Oxfam will promote the role of local actors and acknowledge the work they carry out in communications to the international and national media and to the public.
    • Advocacy
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    • Oxfam commits to endorse and sign on to the Principles of Partnership introduced by the Global Humanitarian Platform in 2007.


    • Policy
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    • Oxfam commits to further involve local partners in the design of programmes from the outset and enable them to participate in decisions and monitoring of Oxfam's programmes and partnership policies.


    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Oxfam commits to increase cash-based programming, using cash as a preferred option in humanitarian programming, unless it is not appropriate in a specific case. Cash-based programming will include hosting the Cash Learning Partnership, cash-transfer programming and investing in the capacities of national governments to develop cash programming and preparedness, such as safety nets and social protection systems.
    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Oxfam commits to raise the alarm bell on emerging crises and ensure that voices of affected people and local civil society are brought to centres of power and decision makers.
    • Advocacy
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    • Oxfam commits to use cash as a preferred option in humanitarian programming, unless it is not appropriate in a specific case, including ensuring its increase in cash-transfer programming (CTP) contributes to positive outcomes for women and girls and the advancement of women's rights, including through the use of on-going gender assessments to identify the benefits and potential risks of CTP.


    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Oxfam endorses the Charter for Change through which it will commit to working with others to enable greater local leadership in humanitarian action.

    • Partnership
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    Core Commitments (6)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to a new way of working that meets people's immediate humanitarian needs, while at the same time reducing risk and vulnerability over multiple years through the achievement of collective outcomes. To achieve this, commit to the following: a) Anticipate, Do Not Wait: to invest in risk analysis and to incentivize early action in order to minimize the impact and frequency of known risks and hazards on people. b) Reinforce, Do Not Replace: to support and invest in local, national and regional leadership, capacity strengthening and response systems, avoiding duplicative international mechanisms wherever possible. c) Preserve and retain emergency capacity: to deliver predictable and flexible urgent and life-saving assistance and protection in accordance with humanitarian principles. d) Transcend Humanitarian-Development Divides: work together, toward collective outcomes that ensure humanitarian needs are met, while at the same time reducing risk and vulnerability over multiple years and based on the comparative advantage of a diverse range of actors. The primacy of humanitarian principles will continue to underpin humanitarian action.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Commit to reinforce national and local leadership and capacities in managing disaster and climate-related risks through strengthened preparedness and predictable response and recovery arrangements.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Commit to increase investment in building community resilience as a critical first line of response, with the full and effective participation of women.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Commit to ensure regional and global humanitarian assistance for natural disasters complements national and local efforts.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Commit to increase substantially and diversify global support and share of resources for humanitarian assistance aimed to address the differentiated needs of populations affected by humanitarian crises in fragile situations and complex emergencies, including increasing cash-based programming in situations where relevant.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity
    • Commit to empower national and local humanitarian action by increasing the share of financing accessible to local and national humanitarian actors and supporting the enhancement of their national delivery systems, capacities and preparedness planning.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Strengthening national/local leadership and systems

    Localization of Aid has been prioritized in Oxfam's Global Steer for countries' and regions' planning for the Financial Year 2018-19. Guidance documents were developed that translate commitments into implications for country-level programming, and internal guidelines to promote the role and work of local actors in communications and media moved into implementation in Quarter 1 (Q1) of 2018.

    Oxfam also implemented stand-alone programming to demonstrate how local actors can lead responses in specific contexts (Financial Enablers Project, Empowering Local and National Humanitarian Actors (ELNHA) project) and Oxfam agreed an internal, cross confederation policy, on the improved representation of the work of local partners in communications products.

    Cash-based programming

    In December 2016, Oxfam endorsed a cash strategy and by January 2018 this had led to the formation of a Cash Team including a Cash Coordinator, Cash Capacity Building Officer, Social Protection Advisor and a team of roving Humanitarian Support Personnel.

    Adherence to quality and accountability standards (e.g. CHS, SPHERE)

    As a member of the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) Alliance Oxfam is committed to promoting quality humanitarian responses. Oxfam started a CHS verification audit carried out by the Humanitarian Quality Assurance Initiative (HQAI) (external auditing body) in January 2018.

    People-centered approaches (feedback mechanisms, community engagement, etc)

    Annual reporting systems for Oxfam country offices now include localization and cash related indicators to track Oxfam’s progress on the WHS localization and cash commitments. This are to be revised in 2018. 

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • By reporting to, or using reports prepared for, UN principal organs, UN governing boards, or other international bodies
    • Through multi-stakeholder processes or initiatives (e.g. IASC, Grand Bargain, Charter for Change, etc).
    • By applying processes/indicators developed to measure WHS commitments specifically.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Country annual reporting now includes indicators for localisation and cash, and additional mapping of cash work and outcomes at Oxfam global level will take place in 2018. Oxfam's programming is increasingly evaluated using benchmarks related to WHS commitments, designed to gauge to what extent programming meets the commitments.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Field conditions, including insecurity and access
    • Information management/tools
    • Other: No standardised data or indicators for CTPs
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Internally, Oxfam's size and structure make it challenging to ensure all stakeholders are aware of the commitments and implications. Externally, more analysis is required to understand ways in which localization can help address women’s rights in contexts with dominance of men in government and civil society and limited gender awareness.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    • Help partners call for increased leadership and hold donors to account on funding.
    • Campaign for stronger government-led crisis coordination, greater national resource mobilization, and improved DRR policies.
    • Implement policy on public communication of the work of local actors.
    • Ensure two regions are fully ‘cash ready’; update cash standard operating procedures.
    • Ensure all programme staff are trained in the CHS commitments.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Work together on a new humanitarian model giving responsibility and leadership to local people, reinforcing national and local humanitarian responses not replacing them.
    • Joint discussion of C4C (Charter for Change) and Grand Bargain commitments with partners and stakeholders at all levels, and between national stakeholders, international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) and donors to address barriers to improvement.
    • Progress on cash via the Cash Learning Partnership's (CaLP) Technical Advisory Group, the Cash Working Group Geneva, Wash Cluster Cash and Markets TWG, and the Common Cash Delivery Platform.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    • Piloting Humanitarian Capacity Development Fund and the Humanitarian Response Grant Facility with local and national humanitarian actors (LNHAs).
    • Convening local NGOs in Kasai Democratic Republic of Congo as central to Oxfam’s response.
    • Co-lead Cash Working Groups; piloting cash and localization in Bangladesh, Uganda.
    • Starting verification with HQAI on CHS compliance in Ethiopia, Uganda, Bangladesh.

    Keywords

    Cash, Local action, People-centred approach, Quality and accountability standards

  • 4B
    Anticipate, do not wait, for crises

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • In countries particularly vulnerable to recurrent natural hazards, Oxfam ensures that programmes are developed which are informed by hazard risk, and enable a flexible response.
    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Oxfam commits to prepare now for the potential La Niña event in late 2016.
    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Oxfam commits to undertake an internal review of its response to the El Niño-exacerbated drought, looking for blocks and incentives for improved response, including a greater use of drought cycle management.
    • Operational
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    Core Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to a new way of working that meets people's immediate humanitarian needs, while at the same time reducing risk and vulnerability over multiple years through the achievement of collective outcomes. To achieve this, commit to the following: a) Anticipate, Do Not Wait: to invest in risk analysis and to incentivize early action in order to minimize the impact and frequency of known risks and hazards on people. b) Reinforce, Do Not Replace: to support and invest in local, national and regional leadership, capacity strengthening and response systems, avoiding duplicative international mechanisms wherever possible. c) Preserve and retain emergency capacity: to deliver predictable and flexible urgent and life-saving assistance and protection in accordance with humanitarian principles. d) Transcend Humanitarian-Development Divides: work together, toward collective outcomes that ensure humanitarian needs are met, while at the same time reducing risk and vulnerability over multiple years and based on the comparative advantage of a diverse range of actors. The primacy of humanitarian principles will continue to underpin humanitarian action.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Commit to accelerate the reduction of disaster and climate-related risks through the coherent implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, as well as other relevant strategies and programs of action, including the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity
    • Commit to improve the understanding, anticipation and preparedness for disaster and climate-related risks by investing in data, analysis and early warning, and developing evidence-based decision-making processes that result in early action.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    To ensure programs are informed by hazard risk, and enable flexible response, Oxfam has:

    • Developed a global DRR strategy providing guidance on including risk analysis in context analysis and programme design.
    • Started to use Oxfam’s existing Vulnerability and Risks Assessment (VRA) tool in humanitarian contexts. Staff and partners were trained in five countries where the VRA has been successfully implemented.
    • Worked on the integration of capacity and vulnerability analysis within humanitarian needs assessment.
    • Encouraged the integration of grant facility mechanisms within DRR programmes to allow local partners to deliver flexible small-scale responses.

    The “Review of Oxfam’s Disaster Risk Reduction Work & Early Action on El Niño”, was released in February 2017. Following its conclusions on Oxfam’s response timeliness, DRR and Early Action contribution to effectiveness and impact, the organization launched a review of its preparedness and early action procedures in order to improve timely response.

    The actions taken to better prepare for La Niña response in 2016 included: monitoring the likelihood of La Niña; contributing to El Niño-La Niña Standard Operating Procedures with the Inter Agency Standing Committee (IASC); advocating for preparedness with the paper “A preventable crises El Niño and La Niña events need earlier responses and a renewed focus on prevention”.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Oxfam is collecting evidence of where it has helped communities and institutions better prepare and respond to disasters.  It has documented a strong positive correlation between its DRR efforts and reduced vulnerability in India with communities and in Central America with local authorities. Evidence is currently being gathered in Bangladesh.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Funding amounts
    • Funding modalities (earmarking, priorities, yearly agreements, risk aversion measures)
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    DRR creates capacity and reduces vulnerabilities but it is underfunded in comparison with post-disaster funding. Over 20 years funding for DRR accounts for just 0.4% of total amount spent on aid. Funding sources should be flexible to allow carrying work before crises, and particularly in slow-onset crises to prevent catastrophes.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    To ensure programmes are informed by hazard risk Oxfam will:

    • Roll out DRR global strategy in all countries and promote a strong commitment to Early Warning - Early Action.
    • Release Organizational and Programme standards, including a Monitoring Evaluation Accountability Learning standard to monitor strategy implementation.
    • Use the Vulnerability and Risk Assessment (VR)A tool in new countries including the Democratci Republic of Congo (DRC), Burundi, Tanzania.
    • Pursue and systematize evaluation work on DRR Impact evidence.
    • Advocate for DRR added value and for long-term funding in DRR.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Invest in long-term risk reduction programmes.
    • Change the funding mechanisms or create specific ones for early action/no regrets actions.
    • Increase use and promotion of global Standard Operating Procedures for early action.
    • Broaden the sample of Forecast Based Funding pilots.
    • Advocate for a community approach on DRR.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    • Contributed to Linking Preparedness Response Resilience research (START consortium).
    • Integrated a local Humanitarian Capacity Self-Assessment in DRR programmes in three countries in 2017.
    • Integrated Grant Facility mechanisms in DRR programmes in three countries in 2017.

    Keywords

    Disaster Risk Reduction

  • 5A
    Invest in local capacities

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • By May 2018 Oxfam commits to address the negative impact of recruiting national NGO staff and develop a fair compensation policy for local organizations for the loss of skilled staff if and when it contracts a local organization's staff.


    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity

    • Oxfam commits to pay local NGOs an adequate amount for their core administrative as well as direct programme costs and publish the percentage of Oxfam's humanitarian funding to local NGOs for capacity building by May 2018.


    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity
    • Oxfam will pass at least 30 percent of its humanitarian funding directly to local NGOs by May 2018 and introduce its partners to donors so they can directly access funding.
    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity

    Core Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to empower national and local humanitarian action by increasing the share of financing accessible to local and national humanitarian actors and supporting the enhancement of their national delivery systems, capacities and preparedness planning.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    Addressing blockages/challenges to direct investments at the national/local level

    Oxfam recognizes that this funding pattern does not reflect the organization it wishes to be, but there is high-level support for internal change, making critical exploration of how Oxfam can contribute more to local non-governmental organization/civil society organization (NGO/CSO) core costs and invest more in capacity-building (both to take place in 2018).

    Direct funding to national/local actors

    In 2017 Oxfam developed tools to obtain data on the percentage of funding transferred to local actors, at affiliate and country level. Data was obtained for FY 15-16 (affiliate level) and FY 16-17 (country level), enhancing organization-wide insight on the scale of change required for Oxfam to meet its funding to local NGOs/CSOs commitment.

    Based on the available data, percentage spend transferred to local and national partners in FY 15-16 was approximately 16%. Additionally, based on data collected from countries in FY 16-17, those reporting greatest amount of humanitarian spend in FY 16-17 were often also the countries with lowest percentage funding going to local actors.

    In order to significantly turn around Oxfam's global average across all countries, most focus needs to be on countries with high levels of annual humanitarian spend, which, in majority of cases, also present highly complex and challenging programming contexts (e.g. Yemen, Central African Republic (CAR), Syria, Iraq).

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • Through multi-stakeholder processes or initiatives (e.g. IASC, Grand Bargain, Charter for Change, etc).
    • By applying processes/indicators developed to measure WHS commitments specifically.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    There is a clear organisational steer on partnering with, and reinforcing, local capacities and systems. Internal management information tools are being developed for operational management against the commitments. Tracking investments in local actor capacity strengthening, coupled with advisory support for country programmes, are vehicles used to monitor progress.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Funding modalities (earmarking, priorities, yearly agreements, risk aversion measures)
    • Institutional/Internal constraints
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Oxfam must have robust partnerships with local/national NGOs/CSOs in place pre-emergency, requiring joined up development-humanitarian planning & priority-setting, proposal development, and funding, as well as harmonized policies on core cost contributions. The pace of change across a large and complex organizational structure is slower than anticipated.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    Harmonization of policies across the confederation which relate to contributions to partner core costs is set to take place in 2018. Adaptation of Oxfam affiliates' finance information systems to be able to track the percentage of Oxfam’s humanitarian funding to local NGOs for capacity building is included in systems change requests for 2018.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    • Increased and continuous joint advocacy by INGOs and UN agencies to donors on including allowances for adequate contributions to partners’ core administrative costs.
    • Engage jointly with platforms/ forums of local organizations before and during responses to discuss appropriate measures for fair compensation for the loss of their best local staff.
    • Coordinate capacity development funding for local organizations to use as they see fit enabling them to make efficient investments for themselves, using local resources.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    In Cox’s Bazaar, Oxfam is proposing a discussion with Charter for Change signatories to engage with the Local Civil Society Organization forum regarding compensation for losing staff to international organisations.  Oxfam has supported the platform in organising events (in Cox’s Bazaar and Dhaka) to monitor Grand Bargain commitments in the response.

    Keywords

    Humanitarian-development nexus, Local action

  • 5E
    Diversify the resource base and increase cost-efficiency

    Individual Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • By May 2018 Oxfam commits to streamline and harmonize across NGOs its requirements for partners, namely capacity assessments, funding proposals and reporting requirements, and to commit not to ask of its partners more than its donors ask of Oxfam.
    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity
    • Oxfam commits by 2017 to publish the types of organizations it works with in humanitarian response using a recognized categorization such as the Global Humanitarian Assistance Report's classifications in real-time, or the International Aid Transparency Initiative standard.
    • Operational
    • Invest in Humanity

    Core Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to increase substantially and diversify global support and share of resources for humanitarian assistance aimed to address the differentiated needs of populations affected by humanitarian crises in fragile situations and complex emergencies, including increasing cash-based programming in situations where relevant.
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity
    • Commit to promote and increase predictable, multi-year, unearmarked, collaborative and flexible humanitarian funding toward greater efficiency, effectiveness, transparency and accountability of humanitarian action for affected people.
    • Invest in Humanity
    1. Highlight the concrete actions taken between 1 January – 31 December 2017 to implement the commitments which contribute to achieving this transformation. Be as specific as possible and include any relevant data/figures.

    The Global Humanitarian Assistance (GHA) classification was further developed by the Grand Bargain workstream #2, leading to an adapted categorization of local humanitarian actors and finalized end 2017. This categorization is now being used internally in Oxfam's confederation-wide partnership classification, and is included in the steer for adaptations to information systems at affiliate level. This categorization is embedded in interim solutions to data collection used in 2017.

    Two Oxfam affiliates (Oxfam Novib and Oxfam US) became members of the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) Member Assembly in 2017, showing a clear commitment on the part of Oxfam to transparency and open data in both development and humanitarian sectors. Oxfam is not yet structurally able to publish the funding going to local actors to the GHA/IATI standard, however has incorporated the requirements in the systems adaptations’ requests across all affiliates. To date Oxfam GB and Oxfam NL, and to some degree Oxfam DK and Oxfam US, are substantially publishing to the IATI registry. An effort to streamline and harmonize capacity assessments across the Oxfam confederation began in Q1 2018, as did joint work on harmonizing due diligence requirements for partners with START, NEAR, Humemtum and TechSoup.

    2. A. How are you measuring progress toward achieving your commitments? Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Through existing, internal systems or frameworks for monitoring, reporting and/or evaluation.
    • By applying processes/indicators developed to measure WHS commitments specifically.
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Using the renewed GHA/GB (Grand Bargain) classification system in Oxfam's interim data collection tools is allowing the confederation to monitor, annually, whether local actors increasingly have access to Oxfam facilitated humanitarian funding, thereby increasing their resource base for humanitarian action. The improved reporting should also improve efficiency and transparency within Oxfam.

    3. A. Please select no more than 3 key challenges faced in implementing the commitments related to this transformation. Only the categories selected by the organisation will be seen below.
    • Information management/tools
    • Multi-stakeholder coordination
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    The multi-stakeholder consultations required under the Grand Bargain Localization workstream to arrive at the finalized classification was a lengthy yet important process. Without clarity on the definitions, final requirements for the internal systems adaptations could not be set out.

    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    • Embedding of the new classification system in Oxfam affiliate information systems, and generating more clarity on where increased funding to local actors is in line with Oxfam steer and ambitions.
    • Publishing Oxfam data on funding to local actors to contribute to sector transparency.
    • Further harmonization of assessment tools and reporting formats within the Oxfam confederation and with other NGOs.

    5. What steps or actions are needed to make collective progress to achieve this transformation?

    Harmonization of GHA/GB data requirements with IATI humanitarian scope, or vice versa, to ensure that supporting Oxfam to become IATI compliant aligns with the humanitarian transparency requirements committed to under the Grand Bargain.

    6. List any good practice or examples of innovation undertaken individually or in cooperation with others to advance this transformation.

    Collaboration with START, NEAR, Humemtum and TechSoup to harmonize due diligence requirements imposed by donors and streamline asks from local partners.

    Keywords

    Transparency / IATI