Humanitarian Response Index
Encyclopedia
The Humanitarian Response Index (HRI) is an independent civil society
initiative to annually assess and rank wealthy countries against their commitment to improve the quality and effectiveness of their humanitarian assistance. Developed by DARA (international organization), the HRI's intended purpose is to assist the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
's Development Assistance Committee
(OECD/DAC) donor
governments ensure that their humanitarian assistance has the greatest impact on beneficiaries. The HRI's aim is to improve the quality and effectiveness of aid, and promote greater efficiency
, effectiveness
, transparency and accountability
of government donors. The first edition was published in 2007, followed by subsequent editions in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
donor governments agreed to a set of Good Humanitarian Donorship (GHD) Principles, according to the Good Humanitarian Donorship Initiative started in 2003.
and ensure that it is used to assist those most in need in the most effective way possible, and with the greatest possible impact.
Specifically, the HRI objectives are:
and UN
agencies. DARA teams also conduct field research on the ground in countries that experience crises in the year of study. Interviews are undertaken with representatives of humanitarian organizations operating in these countries. This quantitative and qualitative information is combined, and the performance of each donor country according to 35 indicators that aim to capture the essence of the GHD Principles. These indicators are grouped into five pillars of good practice to measure the quality, effectiveness and impact of humanitarian action – (i) Responding to needs; (ii) Prevention, risk reduction and recovery; (iii) Working with humanitarian partners; (iv) Protection and international law; and (v) Learning and accountability.
Field missions have been conducted in Afghanistan
, Bangladesh
, Central African Republic
, Chad
, China
, Colombia
, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia
, Georgia
, Haiti
, Indonesia
, Lebanon
, Myanmar
, Nicaragua
, Niger
, occupied Palestinian territory, Pakistan
, Peru
, the Philippines, Somalia
, Sri Lanka
, Sudan
, Timor-Leste, Yemen
and Zimbabwe
.
Civil society
Civil society is composed of the totality of many voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state , the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal...
initiative to annually assess and rank wealthy countries against their commitment to improve the quality and effectiveness of their humanitarian assistance. Developed by DARA (international organization), the HRI's intended purpose is to assist the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is an international economic organisation of 34 countries founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade...
's Development Assistance Committee
Development Assistance Committee
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee is a forum for selected OECD member states to discuss issues surrounding aid, development and poverty reduction in developing countries...
(OECD/DAC) donor
Donor
A donor in general is a person who donates something voluntarily. Usually used to represent a form of pure altruism but sometimes used when the payment for a service is recognised by all parties as representing less than the value of the donation and that the motivation is altruistic...
governments ensure that their humanitarian assistance has the greatest impact on beneficiaries. The HRI's aim is to improve the quality and effectiveness of aid, and promote greater efficiency
Efficiency
Efficiency in general describes the extent to which time or effort is well used for the intended task or purpose. It is often used with the specific purpose of relaying the capability of a specific application of effort to produce a specific outcome effectively with a minimum amount or quantity of...
, effectiveness
Effectiveness
Effectiveness is the capability of producing a desired result. When something is deemed effective, it means it has an intended or expected outcome, or produces a deep, vivid impression.-Etymology:...
, transparency and accountability
Accountability
Accountability is a concept in ethics and governance with several meanings. It is often used synonymously with such concepts as responsibility, answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and other terms associated with the expectation of account-giving...
of government donors. The first edition was published in 2007, followed by subsequent editions in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
Context
As the principal providers of humanitarian assistance, the OECD/DACDevelopment Assistance Committee
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee is a forum for selected OECD member states to discuss issues surrounding aid, development and poverty reduction in developing countries...
donor governments agreed to a set of Good Humanitarian Donorship (GHD) Principles, according to the Good Humanitarian Donorship Initiative started in 2003.
Objectives
DARA created the HRI to complement other initiatives in the sector. The main aims of the HRI are to contribute to ongoing efforts to improve the quality of humanitarian aidHumanitarian aid
Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises including natural disaster and man-made disaster. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity...
and ensure that it is used to assist those most in need in the most effective way possible, and with the greatest possible impact.
Specifically, the HRI objectives are:
- To measure and benchmark the quality and effectiveness of donor governments’ humanitarian assistance
- To contribute to greater transparency and accountability in donors’ policies and practices
- To support a better contextual understanding of the policy and operational barriers that affect effective implementation of good donor practice in humanitarian action
- To promote informed public debateDebateDebate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
and decision-making on humanitarian issues
Methodology
DARA recently revised its methodology for the 2010 edition. To develop the donor rankings, DARA compiles data from different sources, including donors, the OECD, the World BankWorld Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
and UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
agencies. DARA teams also conduct field research on the ground in countries that experience crises in the year of study. Interviews are undertaken with representatives of humanitarian organizations operating in these countries. This quantitative and qualitative information is combined, and the performance of each donor country according to 35 indicators that aim to capture the essence of the GHD Principles. These indicators are grouped into five pillars of good practice to measure the quality, effectiveness and impact of humanitarian action – (i) Responding to needs; (ii) Prevention, risk reduction and recovery; (iii) Working with humanitarian partners; (iv) Protection and international law; and (v) Learning and accountability.
Field missions have been conducted in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Central African Republic
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic , is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the north east, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about ,...
, Chad
Chad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, occupied Palestinian territory, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, the Philippines, Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, Timor-Leste, Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
and Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
Overall OECD/DAC Donor Rank in 2010
| DONOR | # |
|---|---|
 Denmark |
1 |
 Republic of Ireland |
2 |
 New Zealand |
3 |
 Norway |
4 |
 Sweden |
5 |
| European Commission European Commission The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union.... |
6 |
 Switzerland |
7 |
 United Kingdom |
8 |
 Netherlands |
9 |
 Luxembourg |
10 |
 Finland |
11 |
 Canada |
12 |
 Australia |
13 |
 Germany |
14 |
 Early Modern France |
15 |
 Japan |
16 |
 Spain |
17 |
 Belgium |
18 |
 United States |
19 |
 Italy |
20 |
 Portugal |
21 |
 Greece |
22 |
 Austria |
23 |
Overall OECD/DAC Donor Rank in 2009
| DONOR | # |
|---|---|
| Norway |
1 |
| Sweden |
2 |
| Republic of Ireland |
3 |
| Denmark |
4 |
| European Commission European Commission The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union.... |
5 |
| Netherlands |
6 |
| Luxembourg |
7 |
| Switzerland |
8 |
| United Kingdom |
9 |
| Australia |
10 |
| New Zealand |
11 |
| Finland |
12 |
| Canada |
13 |
| United States |
14 |
| Spain |
15 |
| Germany |
16 |
| Belgium |
17 |
| Austria |
18 |
| Japan |
19 |
| Early Modern France |
20 |
| Italy |
21 |
| Greece |
22 |
| Portugal |
23 |
Overall OECD/DAC Donor Rank in 2008
| DONOR | # |
|---|---|
| Sweden |
1 |
| Norway |
2 |
| Denmark |
3 |
| Republic of Ireland |
4 |
| European Commission Flag A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist... |
5 |
| Netherlands |
6 |
| Luxembourg |
7 |
| United Kingdom |
8 |
| Switzerland |
9 |
| Canada |
10 |
| Australia |
11 |
| Finland |
12 |
| New Zealand |
13 |
| Belgium |
14 |
| United States |
15 |
| Spain |
16 |
| Germany |
17 |
| Japan |
18 |
| Italy |
19 |
| Early Modern France |
20 |
| Austria |
21 |
| Portugal |
22 |
| Greece |
23 |
Related Documents
- Humanitarian Response Index 2010: The problems of politicisation
- Humanitarian Response Index 2009: Whose crisis? Clarifying Donor´s priorities
- Humanitarian Response Index 2008: Donor accountability in humanitarian action
- Humanitarian Response Index 2007