Global Surge Report - May 2024

Welcome to the May 2024 edition of the Global Surge Newsletter! On the agenda for this edition:

??? Launching the new Global Surge award

?? ?Strengthening our role in the Standby Partnership Network

?? ?Our interview with the MapScaping Podcast on Humanitarian GIS

?? ?Stories from the field:???????

?? Fostering coordination in Haiti as security crisis spirals???????

?? Helping food security partners gain insight into Gaza's response???????

??Empowering Gender Based Violence response in Central African Republic

HIGHLIGHTS

iMMAP Inc. Global Surge Launches New Global Award with a specific Focus on Haiti, Sudan, and Global Protection Efforts ?

As our current award with USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) concludes, we're excited to announce a significant new chapter in our collaboration.

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?? Previous Award

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From August 2022 to May 2024, the Global Surge Team at iMMAP Inc. addressed the growing demand for Information Management Officers among UN agencies and international NGOs for Standby Partnership Programme deployments. Funded by USAID BHA, we provided essential IM support and technical assistance to the humanitarian response cluster system through Standby Partnership agreements. ?

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Over the past 18 months, we deployed 120 personnel, providing 613 months of support across 27 countries and 15 clusters/sectors. Our SBP deployees were crucial in crises in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Sudan, Haiti, Libya, Türkiye and the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt).

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?? New Award

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Starting this June, we are launching a new 18-month project awarded by USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA). Our focus will be on improving Information Management and Data Monitoring to better identify needs, address response gaps, and enhance the performance of humanitarian assistance, with a specific emphasis on two major crises and the Protection sector.

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?? Geographic focus: While we will continue to provide support to global onset emergencies, our main focus will be on two countries experiencing significant humanitarian crises: Sudan and Haiti.

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?? Thematic focus: While maintaining our support to Clusters, Sectors and Coordination structures in country, we will work on supporting the Global Protection Cluster in protecting people affected by humanitarian crises, identifying needs and addressing specific protection risks through tailored Information Management resources.

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As we embark in this renewed collaboration, we look forward to working with our dedicated deployees to continue assisting our partners in these critical relief efforts.

iMMAP Inc. Strengthens Commitment to Standby Partnership Network (SBP)?

Last November, iMMAP Inc. joined the mid-annual consultation meeting of the Standby Partnership Network, hosted by the Danish Refugee Council in Copenhagen. Representatives from ten United Nations agencies and nine seconding organizations came together to discuss ways to improve the SBP mechanism.

Over two days, the meeting focused on updating the network's coordination mechanism and governance, reviewing trends and developments from 2023. In addition, the findings from the recent SBP Joint Monitoring mission, which iMMAP Inc. co-led in September 2023 with other partners (to be listed), were presented to evaluate the SBP support provided to the earthquake response in Türkiye and Syria. Finally, the team worked on developing the SBP Network action plan for the upcoming year. ?

In May 2024, iMMAP Inc. joined the SBP Annual Consultation meeting held in Geneva during the 2024 Humanitarian Networks & Partnerships Weeks where partners took strategic actions regarding the management of the pool fund, the 2022-2025 strategy and the recruitment of a Network Coordinator.

In 2024, iMMAP Inc. will further deepen its long-lasting involvement with the SBP Network by taking on the role of co-chair for the network's steering committee, reinforcing our enduring dedication to the Standby Partnership Network.

Curious about humanitarian GIS?

Listen to the latest episode of Mapscaping featuring iMMAP Inc. where Hugo Powell, our former junior Information Management officer, shares his experience with Global Surge deployments and how GIS tools are used to analyze data, visualize scenarios, and support quick decision-making during emergencies.

Hosted by Daniel O’Donohue, the MapScaping podcast dives into all things geospatial, from cutting-edge tools and tech to career tips, remote sensing, and earth observation.

The MapScaping Podcast is available on all major streaming platforms.

?? Listen to the episode.

STORIES FROM THE FIELD

Fostering coordination in Haiti as security crisis spirals??

In the wake of February's end, Haiti has plunged deeper into turmoil, grappling with a surge in violence perpetrated by armed groups that have tightened their grip on significant swathes of the country, notably in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.

In a country where half of its 11.7 million inhabitants require humanitarian assistance, this latest surge of violence has disrupted an already precarious situation. With the airport closed and the main port (where most goods and products transit through) attacked and looted, the population faced an urgent need for access to essentials such as food, healthcare, water, and hygiene facilities.

Amidst this fresh spike of violence, Mohamed Dabo, was deployed to the Food Security Cluster in Haiti by iMMAP Inc. Global Surge until March. Before evacuating Port-au-Prince, Mohamed sheded light on the ramifications of escalating violence on humanitarian efforts, underscoring the pivotal role of Information Management Officers in navigating crises.

Read our interview

Helping Food Security Partners Gain Insight into Gaza's Response

Even before the recent crisis sparked on October 7, 2023 , over half of Gaza's population was already facing food insecurity.

The ongoing conflict has severely impacted Gaza's fragile agriculture and food production sectors, making humanitarian aid essential for the 2.3 million residents who now rely on it for sustenance. However, humanitarian access into Gaza is dwindling as needs escalate.

In early 2024, Maureen Wangari, an experienced Information Management Officer, was deployed to the Food Security Sector in Palestine by iMMAP Inc. In our conversation with Maureen in February, she shed light on the unprecedented challenges, stating: "This crisis is unlike any other I have experienced. The scale is immense, and the situation is deteriorating rapidly."

Explore Maureen's insights on the food security situation here.

Empowering Gender Based Violence (GbV) Response in Central African Republic??

Amidst the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR), characterized by violence, displacement, and food insecurity, there's a troubling rise in Gender-based Violence (GbV) cases.

In 2023, GbV cases surged by 8%, reaching an "endemic" level according to the Gender-Based Violence Information Management System. It's projected that about 1.3 million people, roughly a quarter of the population, will need GbV assistance in 2024.

To strengthen response efforts, improve coordination among stakeholders, and better understand the local context, Tieba Nissi Traoré, an Information Management Officer with iMMAP Inc. Global Surge, was deployed to CAR's GbV Area of Responsibility over the past two years.

Returning from Bangui, Tieba shares insights into the increased awareness of Information Management among humanitarian actors, the current ground realities, and challenges related to data privacy in handling GbV data.

Learn more about GbV and IM.

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