Findings on alignment

• Author: Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) (European Commission), Landell Mills International
• Pages: 97-102

Final Evaluation Report: Part B- NRC Partnership Evaluation

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6. Findings on alignment

Finding 1: DG ECHO and NRC are strongly aligned in their strategic priorities and objectives through shared

commitment to humanitarian principles.

Finding 2: The partners work closely and effectively on advocacy, drawing on shared analysis and using their

relative strengths.

Finding 3: NRC follows DG ECHO guidelines for needs assessment and visibility.

6.1. Alignment of priorities, strategies and objectives

At the highest level, the mandate of DG ECHO and the mission statement of NRC are aligned. DG

ECHO’s mandate, gui ded by the 2008 European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid, is to save and

preserve life, to reduce or prevent suffering and to safeguard the integrity and dignity of people affected

by humanitarian crises by providing need-based relief and protection, wherever the need arises if

governments and local actors are overwhelmed, unable or unwilling to act. NRC’s mission is to work to

protect the rights of displaced and vulnerable people during crisis by providing assistance to meet

immediate humanitarian needs, prevent further displacement and contribute to durable solutions.132

The way in which DG ECHO and NRC express their priorities differs, but there is general agreement that

they are strongly aligned and stakeholders attribute this to the value each partner places on the principled

approach to humanitarian assistance. DG ECHO’s overall priority is to ensure that the aid is managed in

the most effective and efficient way possible so that it has the maximum effect, whilst respecting the

international law and fundamental humanitarian principles.133 NRC’s overall priority is to protect, assist

and promote the rights of people affected by displacement in situations of armed conflict and in

accordance with the humanitarian principles.134

DG ECHO sets and reports on priorities annually. Core priorities such as improving coherence between

humanitarian and development aid and building capacities and resilience to disaster run across all

actions. In particular, forgotten crises are prioritised through the allocation of at least 15 percent of the

EU’s annual humanitarian aid budget.135 During the evaluation period, new priorities emerged and the

balance between ongoing and new priorities varied depending on context. Examples included innovations

in allocation of humanitarian aid on the basis of assessed needs (2014); Education in Emergencies (EiE)

(2015);136 responding more rapidly and effectively to natural disasters in the wake of El Nino (2016); use

of cash (2016). In 2017 priorities were responding to gender-based violence; meeting Grand Bargain

commitments in efficiency and value for money, as well as accelerating progress in the nexus; and

maximising the impact of humanitarian aid through support for innovation and digitalisation.137

For NRC, priorities were expressed in terms of reaching more people in hard-to-reach areas; contributing

to finding durable solutions for people in protracted crises; and reaching more people in neglected

132 NRC GLOBAL STRATEGY 2018 – 2020

133 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/factsheets/en/sheet/164/humanitarian-aid and in various documents

134 NRC Strategy op cit

135 https://ec.europa.eu/echo/news/addressing-forgotten-crises-todays-global-context_en

136 In July 2015 Commissioner Christos Stylianides announced his intention to scale-up related EC's support, dedicating

to education 4% of the 2016 humanitarian aid budget during the Oslo Summit on Education for Development.

137 DG ECHO Annual Reports on the European Union's humanitarian aid policies and their implementation 2014, 2015,

2016 and 2017