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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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  • 1B
    Act early

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Denmark commits to continue supporting early warning mechanisms and shared conflict analysis in order to respond early and adequately to potential conflict situations at country and regional levels. Denmark commits to use shared conflict analysis as the basis for investment in conflict prevention measures, mediation and conflict resolution efforts and to assist in hindering conflict to relapse.
    • Operational
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts

    Core Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to act early upon potential conflict situations based on early warning findings and shared conflict analysis, in accordance with international law.
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts
    • Commit to make successful conflict prevention visible by capturing, consolidating and sharing good practices and lessons learnt.
    • 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.

    Denmark continues to support early warning mechanisms in multilateral organisations such as the EU, UN and World Bank and to share conflict analysis with bilateral partners. In 2017 Denmark has contributed to non-government organisations developing sound and timely analysis in order to promote conflict prevention and peace building, strengthening the information base available for early engagement.

    At field level Denmark continues to exercise a Whole-of-Government approach to engage in fragile countries and regions of priority such as Syria-Iraq, Sahel Region, Horn of Africa and Afghanistan. Concrete engagements in 2017 have included support to conflict prevention and mediation at local level in border region between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

    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
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Through existing fora and processes.

    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
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Continuous challenge of ensuring buy-in and engagement at early stages of potential conflict development.

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

    Continued engagement in multilateral tracks to strengthen early warning mechanisms in multilateral fora.

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

    Continued work to promote sharing of information and analysis.

  • 1C
    Remain engaged and invest in stability

    Individual Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark will continue to support the role of the UN in situations of conflict and fragility as well as push for an increased role for regional fora and organisations. Denmark will continue to support conflict resolution and peace-building, while reconfirming that the primary responsibility to prevent and solve conflicts lies with national governments and non-state parties to armed conflict, and requires engagement of communities and civil society in political and governance processes.


    • Policy
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts
    • Denmark will strengthen engagements addressing root causes to conflict which includes furthering inclusive, peaceful and sustainable development through an interlinked approach to humanitarian assistance and development cooperation and a long-term perspective. Denmark will continue to apply integrated approaches to optimise the impact of the humanitarian and development instruments put in use.
    • Operational
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts

    Core Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to improve prevention and peaceful resolution capacities at the national, regional and international level improving the ability to work on multiple crises simultaneously.
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts
    • Commit to sustain political leadership and engagement through all stages of a crisis to prevent the emergence or relapse into conflict.
    • Political Leadership to Prevent and End Conflicts
    • Commit to address root causes of conflict and work to reduce fragility by investing in the development of inclusive, peaceful societies.
    • 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.

    Denmark continues to support the role of the UN in situations of conflict and fragility, which in 2017 included a Danish contribution to the UN Peace Building Fund. At field level Denmark continues to implement a number of regional peace and stabilisation programmes in priority counties and regions such as Syria-Iraq, Sahel-region, Horn of Africa and Afghanistan-Pakistan region. In 2017 engagements included concrete support through UN agencies such as UN Funding Facility for Stabilisation in Iraq, and support to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) projects targeting transnational crime in Sahel, Horn of Africa and the Middle East region. Other concrete engagements in 2017 included working with civil society organisations active in the field to strengthen the advocacy role of civil society for instance in Sahel region and Syria.

    Denmark supported the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Initiative under the World Bank State and Peacebuilding Fund.

    In line with Denmark's new Strategy for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Action, Denmark is applying joined-up approaches to planning and programming of development cooperation and humanitarian action in countries affected by fragility, conflict and displacement. This is also in line with Denmark's support to the implementation of the New Way of Working, cf. section on Initiatives in this World Humanitarian Summit Self-report.

    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
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Through existing fora and processes.

    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
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Insecurity at field level make solid monitoring of transformation on the ground a challenge in many areas.

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

    Continued and strengthened engagement in fragile countries and regions of priority.

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

    Engagement in multilateral fora in order to lift this agenda.

  • 2A
    Respect and protect civilians and civilian objects in the conduct of hostilities

    Core Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.
    • 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.

    Denmark continues to work for awareness and increased respect in relation to the protection of civilians and civilian objects in the conduct of hostilities. In 2017 Denmark contributed significantly to the mine action agenda through 1) core support to the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS); 2) support to UNMAS country activities in Iraq; 3) support to NGO’s engaged in demining activities and mine risk education, in particular Danish De-Mining Group and DanChurchAid and 4) support to other organisations involved in demining in Syria and 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.
    • By reporting to, or using reports prepared for, UN principal organs, UN governing boards, or other international bodies
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Engaging in existing monitoring processes and fora.

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

    Continued support for UNMAS and other organizations involved in mine action.

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

    Continued international action in this area and support to the coordination role played by UNMAS.

    Keywords

    Protection

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

    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.

    Throughout 2017, Denmark continued in relevant international fora 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. Denmark’s new Strategy for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Action also included a commitment to address lack of access to health services.

    The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has established a working group on humanitarian access, together with Danish humanitarian organisations, in view of enhanced focus on the challenges related to lack of humanitarian access, protection and violations of international humanitarian law.

    In Myanmar in 2017, the Danish-led Heads of Mission Group helped negotiate humanitarian access for ICRC and Myanmar Red Cross to Northern Rakhine.

    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
    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Reports on UN Security Council (UNSC) reviews of crisis situations.  Reports from Danish Embassies.

    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.
    • Adherence to standards and/or humanitarian principles
    • Field conditions, including insecurity and access
    • IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability
    Keywords

    IHL compliance and accountability, Protection

  • 2C
    Speak out on violations

    Core Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • 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
    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.

    Denmark continues to commit to and actively to speak out and systematically condemn serious violations of international humanitarian law as well as 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. Also as a member of the European Union and in the context of the UN Human Rights Council, Denmark works actively to address serious human rights violations, including torture and other ill-treatment.

    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
    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
    • IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability
    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    If the Danish candidature to the Human Rights Council is successful, Denmark will bring this commitment to the Council membership.

    Keywords

    IHL compliance and accountability

  • 2D
    Take concrete steps to improve compliance and accountability

    Individual Commitments (4)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark commits to removing barriers for coherent humanitarian and development efforts regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality and the eradication of GBV in humanitarian crises. On this basis, Denmark commits to forming one single partnership agreement covering both humanitarian and development cooperation with UN-organizations with a dual gender related mandate such as UNFPA and UNICEF and with flexible funding streams.


    • Operational
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity Leave No One Behind Invest in Humanity

    • Denmark commits to showing political leadership by advocating and working in all relevant international fora for enhancing gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the fight against gender-based violence in humanitarian crises. This includes implementing the commitment made as a Member State Party to the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) in the "Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict" of advocating on preventing sexual violence in conflict and on ending impunity for these crimes.


    • Advocacy
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

    • Denmark commits to strengthen the dissemination of international humanitarian law, for instance by issuing the Danish Military Manual and presenting it in relevant international fora. The manual will contain provisions for the compliance of international humanitarian law and other relevant international law, in particular human rights law, during planning and execution of military operations within the framework of Denmark'€™s military engagements. Denmark commits to raise awareness of the issues of sexual and gender-based violence in armed conflict, for instance through dissemination of and training in international humanitarian law and/or other humanitarian education activities.


    • Operational
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
    • Denmark is signing up to Call to Action on Protection from Gender-based Violence in Emergencies and its roadmap.
    • Policy
    • 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.

    IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability

    The Danish Military Manual has now been published. The manual contains provisions for the compliance of international humanitarian law and other relevant international law, in particular human rights law, during planning and execution of military operations within the framework of Denmark’s military engagements. Furthermore, Denmark actively supports the accountability agenda in a Syrian context, e.g. through financial support to the UN International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM).

     

     

    Gender-based violence prevention and response

    Denmark continued to be a champion of the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) in 2017:

    • by advocating at high political level for fight of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in humanitarian crises e.g. at UN high-level meetings.
    • by funding specific the United Nations Population Fund's (UNFPA) GBV-efforts in Bangladesh, Mali, Palestine, Central African Republic, Mali (15 million DKK in 2017).
    • by mainstreaming GBV efforts and continuously removing barriers for coherent humanitarian and development efforts regarding sexual and reproductive health and right (SRHR). Denmark’s new Strategy for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Action provides the framework for ensuring that Danish development and humanitarian assistance takes into account the special vulnerabilities of women and girls. In September 2017 signing of partnership agreements with UNFPA and UNICEF covering both humanitarian and development funding. New partnerships with Danish civil society organizations (CSOs) agreed in 2017 include a focus on protection from GBV.
    • as an active partner in Call to Action on protection against GBV in emergencies.

    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?

    Among other through:

    • Call to Action collective progress assessments,
    • Assessing to which degree partners includes GBV components in programmes and create synergy of humanitarian and development efforts.

    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)
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Barriers of creating synergy of humanitarian and development efforts include funding modalities (funding streams politically earmarked for humanitarian and development activities), multi-annual funding often require yearly parliamentary approval, and silo thinking at UN and CSO partners whereby development and humanitarian activities are treated separately.

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

    Denmark plans to further strengthen the dissemination of international humanitarian law by issuing the Danish Military Manual in a version translated into English.

    Denmark will provide multi-year funding towards GBV prevention, coordination and response in humanitarian crises 2018-19 through its strategic partnerships with selected Danish NGOs and UN organisations, in particular UNFPA. Moreover, Denmark will seek to further linkages in the field between SRHR actors and other humanitarian actors to create synergies of activities in the humanitarian responses.

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

    Ensure donor commitment to the fight against GBV, including by getting more donors to sign up to the Call to Action initiative. Ensure that other sectors/clusters also contributes to the cause (e.g. WASH, Education, Shelter etc) – hold the the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) organisations accountable towards the IASC policy on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in humanitarian action from December 2017.

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

    Addressing root causes of GBV in emergencies requires a development assistance lens. Denmark works towards breaking down barriers between humanitarian and development work (eg. new Development Strategy includes humanitarian action; partnership agreements with organisations encompassing both humanitarian and development funding; multi-annual contributions to humanitarian efforts).

    Keywords

    Gender, IHL compliance and accountability

  • 2E
    Uphold the rules: a global campaign to affirm 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.

    Denmark continues to commit to speak out actively and systematically both internationally, e.g. in the context of the UN Human Rights Council, and in relevant bilateral contexts, condemning 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. Throughout 2017, Denmark has actively participated in and supported the intergovernmental process in Geneva on strengthening respect for international humanitarian law in line with Resolution 2 of the 32nd International Conference.

     

    In 2017, Denmark doubled its core contribution to ICRC to DKK 40 million (from DKK 20 million in 2016)

    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
    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.
    • Adherence to standards and/or humanitarian principles
    • Buy-in
    • IHL and IHRL compliance and accountability
    Keywords

    IHL compliance and accountability

  • 3A
    Reduce and address displacement

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Denmark commits to prioritize solutions that strengthen the protection, self-reliance and resilience of IDPs and refugees as well as host communities, preferably within the framework of local and national development plans. This will be done by focussing strategic partnership agreements and other agreements with humanitarian partners on long-term, solutions-oriented approaches in protracted humanitarian crisis situations and by seeking to ensure strategic and operational coherence between such activities and relevant bilateral development activities. Further, Denmark commits to support such action through dialogue with affected governments and other relevant stakeholders in favour of a policy environment that strengthens access to basic socio-economic rights and services for displaced populations.
    • Operational
    • Leave No One Behind

    • Denmark commits to reinforcing the Solutions Alliance as a central platform for collaborative action in support of solutions to conflict-induced displacement and to do so by engaging in relevant national groups and by continuing to contribute to the costs of the secretariat and other common functions. The Alliance draws on the comparative advantages of humanitarian and development actors for collective action. A core action will be the active pursuit of new national/ regional groups or other national configurations in countries affected by forced displacement.


    • Partnership
    • Leave No One Behind

    • Denmark is developing a new integrated strategy for development and humanitarian assistance, using the 2030-agenda and the principle of leaving no one behind as a basis. Through this, it will ensure the ability to use all relevant assistance instruments in coherent support of safe, dignified and durable solutions for displaced people through voluntary return home, local integration or settlement elsewhere while also ensuring appropriate support for host and receiving communities.


    • Policy
    • Leave No One Behind Invest in Humanity

    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

    Denmark continued to be a top donor to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and is committed to finding durable solutions for refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs).

    Denmark supported the roll out of the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) at country level both politically and financially, in Ethiopia, Uganda and in the region affected by Somali displacement. 

    In 2017, Denmark supported comprehensive approaches to displacement with  DKK 150.7 million to the EU Trust Fund for the Syria crisis (Madad), bringing the total Danish contribution to Madad to DKK 300.7 million, and with DKK 337,1 million to the Global Concessional Financing Facility (GCFF) for Middle Income Countries hosting refugees with the aim to provide longer-term development-oriented solutions (infrastructure, heath, jobs) for displacement affected population and the host communities, especially in Jordan and Lebanon. Moreover, Denmark contributed DKK 11 million to the International Development Association (IDA) 18 refugee window. Denmark also supported the Education Cannot Wait Fund, providing education in emergencies. Through its support to civil society organizations (CSO) partners, Denmark also supported resilience, self-reliance and protection of refugees, IDPs and host communities.

     

    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.
    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.
    • Institutional/Internal constraints
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    • Other: Important that all relevant government ministries, beyond ministries tied to refugee response, are involved to support longer-term resilience.
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Host governments must be in the lead to the extent possible, with the involvement of all relevant government ministries, beyond those ministries or departments traditionally tied to refugee response, and with support for gradual capacity building if necessary. Parallel systems do not create the engagements needed to effectively support longer-term resilience and self-reliance.

     

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

    Including forced displacement issues in national development plans is a prerequisite for the design of truly comprehensive interventions.

    Keywords

    Displacement, Education

  • 3D
    Empower and protect women and girls

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark commits to removing barriers for coherent humanitarian and development efforts regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality and the eradication of GBV in humanitarian crises. On this basis, Denmark commits to forming one single partnership agreement covering both humanitarian and development cooperation with UN-organizations with a dual gender related mandate such as UNFPA and UNICEF and with flexible funding streams.


    • Operational
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity Leave No One Behind Invest in Humanity

    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.

    For gender-based violence (GBV) specifically please see self-reporting in 2D. Denmark continued to be a champion of women’s empowerment and rights in 2017 by:

    • advocating at high political level for women’s empowerment and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) e.g. at UN high-level meetings.
    • mainstreaming gender equality and right focus and continuously removing barriers for coherent humanitarian and development efforts regarding SRHR. A new Strategy for Denmark’s Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Action was adopted in January 2017 provides the framework for ensuring that Danish development and humanitarian assistance includes a focus on women empowerment and SRHR. In September 2017 signing of partnership agreements with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) covering both humanitarian and development funding. New partnerships with Danish CSO’s agreed in 2017 include a focus on gender empowerment and SRHR.
    • funding specific UNFPA SRHR efforts in Syria crisis (20 million DKK), and UNFPA family planning services in Ethiopia in cooperation with WFP (20 million DKK).
    • funding efforts of Women’s Refugee Commission and the Inter-Agency Working Group on Reproductive Health in Crises to expand knowledge and close research gaps on sexual and reproductive health and rights in crisis setting (3 million DKK).
    • facilitating development of innovative solutions: Danish MFA co-organized a Hackathon on SRHR in Crises in Copenhagen in November 2017.

    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?

    Among other through:

    • Assessing to which degree partners includes gender focus in programmes and create synergy of humanitarian and development efforts.

    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 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?

    Barriers of creating synergy of humanitarian and development efforts include funding modalities and silo thinking at UN and CSO partners whereby development and humanitarian activities are treated separately. While partners often have a GBV focus, more buy-in is needed on SRHR and women involvement in humanitarian action.

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

    Denmark will provide multi-year funding towards SRHR efforts in humanitarian crises through its strategic partnerships with selected Danish NGOs and UN organisations, in particular UNFPA. Moreover, Denmark will seek to further linkages in the field between SRHR actors and other humanitarian actors to create synergies of activities in the humanitarian responses.

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

    Ensure donor commitment to SRHR efforts. Ensure that other sectors/clusters also contribute to the cause (e.g. Wash, Education, Shelter etc) – hold the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC)  organisations accountable towards the IASC policy on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in humanitarian action from December 2017.

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

    SRHR efforts often under-prioritized. Important to get all sectors/clusters engaged. Danish funded project in Ethiopia where UNFPA in cooperation with WFP food distribution are able to access internally displaced women not otherwise reached with family planning services.

    Keywords

    Gender

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

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Denmark commits through its engagements with humanitarian organizations to promote partnerships with local actors in order to strengthen local capacities for emergency response and sustainable recovery.
    • Partnership
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need
    • Denmark commits to contributing to the improvement of the quality and effectiveness of humanitarian action and to ensuring that it is accountable to disaster- and conflict affected communities. Denmark commits fully to the Core Humanitarian Standard and sees this as an important tool to making humanitarian response more appropriate, relevant, effective and timely. Denmark will in close cooperation with its Danish humanitarian partners support the implementation of the Core Humanitarian Standard in their policies and organisational frameworks and support the further dissemination of the standard.
    • Policy
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need

    • Denmark commits to support capacities of local and national responders through the partnership frameworks with Denmark's humanitarian partner organisations.


    • 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

    In 2017, Denmark redesigned its civil society organizations (CSO) partnership approach. As a result, Denmark selected 17 Danish CSO strategic partners whose engagements cover both development cooperation and humanitarian action for 2018-2021. The negotiations around the strategic partnerships allowed Denmark to engage with the CSOs in discussion on how to improve local actor engagements through multi-year investments and capacity strengthening. This opened up for more stable, efficient and predictable working environments for Danish CSOs and their South partners. The CSO strategic partners were required to work with local/national partners and to explain in detail their approach, based on which the quality and depth of their local partnerships. CSOs working in areas affected by armed conflict and recurrent natural disasters were specifically required to work with capacity building of communities, national and local organisations, local authorities and relevant civil society actors aimed at building local capacity to better prepare for and respond to crises, in particular in favour of vulnerable and marginalised groups, including women and girls.                                   

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

    In the 2017 redesign of its strategic CSO partnerships, Denmark made it clear that it would hold CSO partners accountable for increasing involvement of beneficiaries in the design and response as well as in the monitoring and evaluation, including being verified or certified under the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS). The CHS is applicable for all CSOs working in areas directly impacted by conflict.

    Other-4A

    In the boards of UN agencies, Denmark has requested its multi-year agreements with UN agencies to be reflected in their sub-contractual arrangements with NGO implementing partners, to enable these to plan for a longer time horizon in protracted crises and to build their capacities.

    Denmark provided core support to the Overseas Development Institute/Humanitarian Policy Group (ODI/HPG) integrated research programme 2017-2019 which includes a thematic focus on "From the ground up: understanding local response in crises".

    Moreover, Denmark supported Development Initiatives' work, including on localization and analysis of data.

    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.
    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.
    • Adherence to standards and/or humanitarian principles
    • Funding modalities (earmarking, priorities, yearly agreements, risk aversion measures)
    • Strengthening national/local systems
    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    The MFA will strengthen its analysis of the proportion of grants transferred to local/national partners. Moreover, it will explore how it can blend with development funding which would bring longer-term perspective and funding to strengthening  local and national partners.

     

    In its capacity of donor lead on the European Regional Development and Protection Programme Middle East, Denmark is developing a Phase 2. Based on the evaluation, capacity strengthening of local actors and systems will be a strategic priority for the 4-year programme.

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

    Roll out of the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) will help to obtain an overview of funding going to local and national actors through intermediaries such as INGOs, multilateral agencies or pooled funds. 

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

    The MFA assesses that the World Humanitarian Summit has galvanized support among CSOs and a strong commitment to the work stream for localization. By demanding status of progress on partnership from its CSO partners, the MFA has deliberately used its strategic partnerships as a way to incentivize Danish CSOs to make progress on the localization.

    Keywords

    Humanitarian-development nexus, Local action, Quality and accountability standards

  • 4B
    Anticipate, do not wait, for crises

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark is dedicated to continue funding of the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) established under the UN Climate Convention for the period 2016-2018 with DKK 156 million. The LDCF is designed to address urgent and immediate adaptation needs of Least Developed Countries. This includes support to disaster risk management, coastal zone management and climate information services.


    • Financial
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity

    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.

    In addition to continuation of climate relevant funding through the multilateral development institutions, including funding of the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) established under the UN Climate Convention, Denmark has pledged DKK 80 million to climate adaptation in Ethiopia and Mali with a particular focus on the agricultural sector.

    Identification and implementation of climate adaptation within agriculture, e.g. more climate resistent crops, climate sensitive cultivation methods, improved water resources management and green post-harvest value-adding can improve peoples life and transform the selected communities.

    In March 2017, Denmark provided DKK 300 million for early humanitarian action to avert famine  in the Horn of Africa and Yemen. The grant was provided through the World Food Programme (WFP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Danish NGO’s working in the affected countries.

    Denmark also supported the Government of Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Programme in view of building a national safety net system to provide effective support in chronically food insecure rural areas, including providing cover during droughts.

    Denmark provided DKK 11 million to the Global Program on Forced Displacement (GPFD) in support of the implementation of the International Development Association (IDA) 18 Refugee Sub-window, with a view to strengthening preparedness for potential new refugee flows.

    In 2017, Denmark redesigned its civil society organizations (CSO) partnership approach. Denmark required its strategic Danish CSO partners working in areas affected by recurrent natural disaster to work with capacity building of communities, national and local organisations, local authorities and civil society actors to better prepare for and respond to crises.

    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.
    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
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    • Preparedness
    Keywords

    Disaster Risk Reduction

  • 4C
    Deliver collective outcomes: transcend humanitarian-development divides

    Individual Commitments (5)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark commits to contribute to bridge the humanitarian - development divide. Denmark is developing a new integrated strategy for development and humanitarian assistance, using the 2030-agenda and the principle of leaving no one behind. Building coherent responses between humanitarian assistance and development cooperation in protracted crises, where Denmark is engaged, will be a core part.


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

    • Denmark commits to include "innovation" as a policy-priority in the dialogue with and funding of UN-organizations and NGOs with which Denmark has a strategic partnership agreement. This implies a willingness to allocate funding towards activities that prioritize and strengthen innovation and innovative approaches.


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

    • Denmark commits to provide multi-year planning frameworks with its humanitarian NGO partners. Multi-year planning is seen as essential in order to respond efficiently to protracted crises and predictable recurrent crises.


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

    • Denmark commits to support the establishment and work of GAHI with a significant financial contribution as innovative solutions and approaches are a necessity in order to address growing humanitarian needs, while better utilizing available resources. Denmark strongly supports the promotion and facilitation of innovation to improve the humanitarian response. This entails engaging inter alia with the private sector and innovation networks in order to foster their development of better solutions for populations affected by humanitarian crises.


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

    • Denmark commits to support the promotion and facilitation of innovation to improving humanitarian response. This entails engaging inter alia with the private sector and innovation networks in order to foster their development of better solutions for populations affected by humanitarian crises. Denmark commits to include "innovation" as a policy-priority in the dialogue with and funding of UN-organizations and NGOs with which Denmark has a strategic partnership agreement. This implies a willingness to allocate funding towards activities that prioritize and strengthen innovation and innovative approaches.


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

    Core Commitments (1)

    • 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
    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.

    Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis and planning towards collective outcomes

    In 2017, Denmark launched its new joint strategy for development cooperation and humanitarian action The World 2030. Denmark works with its international and national partners to roll out joined-up humanitarian and development assistance to address both short-term and long term aspects of humanitarian crises, fragility and violent conflicts. Denmark applies a longer-term development approach to addressing displacement in fragile and conflict-affected countries. E.g. Danish support to: The roll out of the Comprehensive Refugee and Response Framework (CRRF) globally and at country-level in Uganda, Kenya and in the region affected by Somali displacement; the World Bank's (WB) Global Program for Forced Displacement;  the International Development Association (IDA) refugee window; the Global Concessional Financing Facility to MICs hosting large refugee populations. Danish lead on the European Regional Development and Protection Program (RDPP) Middle East.  Support to RDPP Horn of Africa. Supports the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (H-D-P) Initiative under the WB's State and Peacebuilding Fund. Denmark joins up humanitarian and development analysis and planning in its bilateral development programs in Uganda, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Somalia.

    Other-4C

    Denmark has new agreements with United Nations (UN) and civil society organizations (CSO) covering both humanitarian and development work. Multi-year funding is provided for the World Food Programme (WFP), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNDP) as well as for 17 strategic CSO partners to enable them to do multi-year planning and programming in protracted crises. Multi-year support is also provided to the World Bank (WB) Global Concessional Financing Facility, the WB State and Peacebuilding Fund, including the H-D-P Initiative, and Education Cannot Wait, and for the European Development and Protection Programmes.

    Denmark recognizes the potential for increased use of innovation in the humanitarian response. The support to Danish civil society therefore includes criteria for innovative approaches to international development cooperation and humanitarian action and allows the partners to allocate up to 10% of the engagement budget to innovation. Denmark engages in the development of private sector initiatives, new partnerships and international platforms such as the Global Alliance for Humanitarian Innovation. Furthermore, UN WOMEN, UNFPA, UNDP, and UNICEF receive Danish support for their innovation facilities.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    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.
    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.
    • Institutional/Internal constraints
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    • Multi-stakeholder coordination
    4. Highlight actions planned for 2018 to advance implementation of your commitments in order to achieve this transformation.

    Denmark continues its focus on operational roll out of the humanitarian-development nexus at country level, including roll out of the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework and the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Initiative in collaboration between the World Bank and the UN.

    Denmark supports EU operationalising the humanitarian-development nexus in in Uganda as pilot country.

    In the Grand Bargain (GB), Denmark and UNDP have been co-convenors of the humanitarian-development engagement in GB workstream 10. In 2018, all GB workstreams are expected to integrate the humanitarian-development nexus.

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

    The increased multi-year funding provided by donors requires a stronger focus on multi-year collaborative planning and response plans and stronger links between humanitarian and development actors. Focus should be on pragmatic solutions that work on the ground - rather than on process and HQ based discussions. Need for more inclusion of governments and local authorities to ensure sustainability, without undermining the commitment to principled humanitarian action.

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

    Denmark has entered into multi-year agreements covering both humanitarian and development work with UN and CSO partner organisations to enable them to plan and programme long term to meet and reduce needs and vulnerabilities in protracted crises - in line with the New Way of Working. Focus on building livelihoods, resilience and self-reliance in crises.

    Keywords

    Humanitarian-development nexus, Innovation

  • 5A
    Invest in local capacities

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility
    • Denmark commits to provide funding to country-based pooled funds (CBPF) to ensure flexible and strategic prioritisation of needs and in view of channelling funding to local and national responders.
    • 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.

    Country-based pooled funds

    In 2017, Denmark continued to be among the top-donors to the UN-led country-based pooled funds (CBPFs), with a total contribution of DKK 225 million to CBPFs in Lebanon, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Turkey and Yemen. Denmark supported CBPFs as a mechanism that helps increase and improve assistance by national and local responders - often in crisis situations where international actors have limited access. Denmark also attached importance to CBPF's overhead policy which offers equal treatment to international, national and local actors. CBPFs are assessed to represent a fair, systematized approach to ensuring provision of overheads to national and local NGOs, letting them benefit from the same conditions as international non-governmental organizations (INGOs). The MFA is also engaging with its UN and CSO partners in discussions on access to pooled funding mechanisms, including for local women's groups.

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

    In 2017, as part of its redesign of CSO partnerships, the Danish MFA called on strategic CSO partner organisations to strengthen their analysis of the proportion of funding that is transferred to local partners, and the proportion used for capacity development of local partners.

    Other-5A

    Denmark provided DKK 5 million to Somali and Afghan diaspora groups in Denmark working with humanitarian projects in their countries of origin.

    The Danish Emergency Relief Fund (DERF) had a strong focus on local ownership and engagement of local partners. In 2017, 86 per cent of all grants were implemented through local partners, and 69 per cent went directly to project activities and goods for crises affected people and communities.

    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.
    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.
    • Adherence to standards and/or humanitarian principles
    • Data and analysis
    • Strengthening national/local systems
    B. How are these challenges impacting achievement of this transformation?

    Denmark does not provide humanitarian funding directly to local and national responders, but provides humanitarian funding indirectly to local and national responders through intermediaries such as UN agencies, INGOs/Danish strategic CSO partners and pooled funds. Denmark provides development funding directly to local and national actors, in countries with Danish bilateral development programmes. The MFA has             

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

    As donor lead on the European Regional Development and Protection Programme Middle East, Denmark will incentivize direct partnerships with local actors and national authorities through adapting the selection criteria for partnerships under phase 2.

    Several Danish CSO partners engage through the Charter for Change (C4C) to increase direct funding to southern-based humanitarian NGOs, reaching 20 per cent of their funding by May 2018.

     

     

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

    Full adherence to the IATI standards are expected to provide better overview of funding streams to national and local actors.

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

    Following Denmark's consultations with Danish strategic CSO partners, many of these are currently strengthening their financial tracking systems so that they are suited to track support to local and national actors as well as preparing their organisations to report through the IATI system.

     

    Keywords

    Country-based pooled funds, Local action

  • 5B
    Invest according to risk

    Individual Commitments (1)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark is dedicated to continue funding of the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) established under the UN Climate Convention for the period 2016-2018 with DKK 156 million. The LDCF is designed to address urgent and immediate adaptation needs of Least Developed Countries. This includes support to disaster risk management, coastal zone management and climate information services.


    • Financial
    • Change People's Lives: From Delivering Aid to Ending Need Invest in Humanity

    Core Commitments (2)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • 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 invest in risk management, preparedness and crisis prevention capacity to build the resilience of vulnerable and 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.

    In addition to continuation of climate relevant funding through the multilateral development institutions, including funding of the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) established under the UN Climate Convention, Denmark has pledged DKK 80 million to climate adaption in Ethiopia and Mali with a particular focus on the agricultural sector. Identification and implementation of climate adaptation within agriculture, e.g. more climate resistent crops, climate sensitive cultivation methods, improved water resources management and green post-harvest value-adding can improve peoples life and transform the selected communities.

    Denmark also supported the Government of Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Programme in view of building a national safety net system to provide effective support in chronically food insecure rural areas, including providing cover during droughts.

    In 2017, Denmark redesigned its civil society organization (CSO) partnership approach. Denmark required its strategic Danish CSO partners working in areas affected by recurrent natural disaster to work with capacity building of communities, national and local organisations, local authorities and civil society actors to better prepare for and respond to crises, in particular in favour of vulnerable and marginalised groups.

    B. How are you assessing whether progress on commitments is leading toward change in the direction of the transformation?

    Projects are reviewed and evaluated when finished and several mid-term reviews are conducted against pre-defined indicators.

    Keywords

    Community resilience, Disaster Risk Reduction

  • 5D
    Finance outcomes, not fragmentation: shift from funding to financing

    Individual Commitments (4)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark commits to contribute to bridge the humanitarian - development divide. Denmark is developing a new integrated strategy for development and humanitarian assistance, using the 2030-agenda and the principle of leaving no one behind. Building coherent responses between humanitarian assistance and development cooperation in protracted crises, where Denmark is engaged, will be a core part.


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

    • Denmark commits to pre-allocate substantial emergency response funds to selected partner organizations enabling these to respond immediately and without additional approval in the case of sudden-onset crises.


    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity

    • Denmark commits to removing barriers for coherent humanitarian and development efforts regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality and the eradication of GBV in humanitarian crises. On this basis, Denmark commits to forming one single partnership agreement covering both humanitarian and development cooperation with UN-organizations with a dual gender related mandate such as UNFPA and UNICEF and with flexible funding streams.


    • Operational
    • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity Leave No One Behind Invest in Humanity

    • Denmark is developing a new integrated strategy for development and humanitarian assistance, using the 2030-agenda and the principle of leaving no one behind as a basis. Through this, it will ensure the ability to use all relevant assistance instruments in coherent support of safe, dignified and durable solutions for displaced people through voluntary return home, local integration or settlement elsewhere while also ensuring appropriate support for host and receiving communities.


    • Policy
    • Leave No One Behind Invest in Humanity

    Core Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Core Responsibility
    • Commit to enable coherent financing that avoids fragmentation by supporting collective outcomes over multiple years, supporting those with demonstrated comparative advantage to deliver in context.
    • 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
    • Commit to broaden and adapt the global instruments and approaches to meet urgent needs, reduce risk and vulnerability and increase resilience, without adverse impact on humanitarian principles and overall action (as also proposed in Round Table on "Changing Lives").
    • 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.

    Denmark provides a substantial part of its financing as flexible to ensure agility and responsiveness in crises situations. In 2017, 35% of Denmark's total humanitarian funding was non-earmarked or softly earmarked. In Denmark's 2017 Humanitarian Partnership Agreements with UN Agencies and civil society organizations (CSOs), flexible funds totalling DDK 667 million were included to enable rapid use in sudden onset or rapidly deteriorating situations.

    Denmark's new Strategy for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Action, launched in 2017, aims at more coherent approaches in crises and in fragile and conflict-affected settings. In line with the strategy and with the New Way of Working, Denmark favours coherent financing modalities. Denmark sees multi-year planning as key to incentivise more effective and joined-up humanitarian-development work in fragile contexts. Denmark concluded multi-year agreements with the World Food Programme (WFP), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to enable multilateral organisations to do multi-year planning and programming in protracted crises.

    Denmark provided multi-annual financing for the World Bank (WB) Global Concessional Financing Facility, providing development-oriented support for MIC's hosting large refugee populations, the WB State and Peacebuilding Fund, including the HDP nexus window and the Forced Displacement window, and for the Education Cannot Wait.

    Denmark's 4-year agreements with CSO partners incentivize them to do multi-year planning and programming in protracted crises. Agreements with UN and CSO partners encompassed both humanitarian and development work to ensure coherence.

    Denmark worked on blending humanitarian and development aid streams to fund vulnerability-oriented interventions in protracted or recurrent crises. E.g. Ethiopian and Kenyan contexts where multi-annual development programme interventions in the context of drought, famine and displacement were initiated in 2017. Similarly, in Uganda, responding to displacement was included as objective for multi-annual bilateral development programme.

    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).
    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
    • Joined-up humanitarian-development analysis, planning, funding and/or response
    • Multi-stakeholder coordination
    Keywords

    Humanitarian-development nexus

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

    Individual Commitments (3)

    • Commitment
    • Commitment Type
    • Core Responsibility

    • Denmark commits overall to the Grand Bargain to work together more efficiently and with new partners and innovative solutions.


    • Partnership
    • Invest in Humanity
    • Denmark commits to support the Central Emergency Response Fund to provide funding for rapid response and underfunded emergencies.
    • Financial
    • Invest in Humanity
    • Denmark will remain committed to providing 0.7% of GNI as Official Development Assistance (ODA). Aid will increasingly be used catalytically to mobilise non-public funding and resources.
    • Financial
    • 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.

    Denmark continues to fulfill the United Nations (UN) goal of contributing 0.7 per cent of the gross national income to development assistance.

    In 2017, Denmark provided DKK 830 million in non-earmarked or softly earmarked funding. This corresponds to 35 per cent of Denmark's humanitarian funding being non-earmarked or softly earmarked in 2017. Thus, in 2017, Denmark exceeded the Grand Bargain target (of 30 per cent) for unearmarked and softly earmarked humanitarian funding.

    In 2017 Humanitarian Partnership Agreements with UN agencies (the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)) and civil society organizations (CSOs), flexible funds totalling DKK 667 million were included to enable Denmark's strategic partners to react swiftly and in a flexible manner through the deployment of personnel and through financial and material contributions for rapid use in sudden onset or rapidly deteriorating situations throughout the year.

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

    In its redesigned Strategic Partnerships with Danish CSOs for 2018-2021, CSO partners have from 2018 the autonomy to use up to 30 per cent of the agreed partnerships budget as flexible funds.

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

    Denmark continues to see flexible financing as a key to ensure agility and responsiveness in crises situations. This also entails flexibility across the humanitarian-development nexus, promoting more coherent approaches in response to conflict, fragility and displacement. To improve cost efficiency, less silos e.g. in the UN Development System are required. Field operations and field effectiveness must be prioritized.

    Keywords

    Humanitarian-development nexus

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