A REVIEW OF THE HUMANITARIAN COUNTRY TEAM (HCT) IN NIGERIA & RECOMMENDATION FOR WAY FORWARD

1. A REVIEW OF THE HUMANITARIAN COUNTRY TEAM (HCT) IN NIGERIA & RECOMMENDATION FOR WAY FORWARD Presented at the HCT 05/06/2014

2. The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Guidance on HCTs • Guidance to be adapted to suit country contexts • The National Government retains primary role in initiating, organizing, coordinating and implementing humanitarian assistance in its territory and whenever possible the HCT operates in support of and coordination with national and local authorities • Composed of organizations that undertake humanitarian action in-country and are committed to participate in coordination arrangement

3. HOW ARE HCTS ESTABLISHED • HCT is established in countries with an HC position. • In the absence of an HC, HCT is established when a humanitarian crisis erupts or a situation of chronic vulnerability sharply deteriorates. • HCT is also established to steer preparedness activities, if no other adequate coordination mechanism exists. • The Resident Coordinator takes a decision to an HCT in the absence of a HC in consultation with relevant operational agencies and the Emergency Relief Coordinator.

4. Composition • The HCT is composed of organisations that undertake humanitarian action in-country (Sector/cluster leads represent their organizations and clusters/sectors) • Commit to participate in coordination arrangements. (UN agencies, IOM, NGOs, and, subject to their individual mandates, components of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. • The size of the HCT should be minimized to allow for effective decision-making. • Membership main criterion is operational relevance. • Members are represented at the highest level (Country Representative or equivalent) • The HCT is chaired by the HC or, in the absence of an HC position, by the RC • When appropriate, other institutions & agencies may be invited to participate in HCT meetings.

5. The HCT is responsible for: • Agreeing on common strategic issues and policies related to humanitarian action in-country i.e. • setting common objectives & priorities, • developing strategic plans, • agreeing on the establishment of sector/clusters and the designation of lead agencies, • providing guidance to sector/cluster lead agencies, activating resource mobilization mechanisms, and • advising the RC and/or HC on allocation of resources from in-country humanitarian pooled funds, where they exist.

6. The HCT is responsible for: • Promoting adherence by organizations that undertake humanitarian action in-country with • humanitarian principles, • Principles of Partnership, • IASC guidelines, and policies and; • strategies adopted by the HCT.

7. Interface with other in-country coordination mechanisms • The HCT and the UNCT coexist and do not replace each-other. • The HC or, in the absence of an HC position, the RC is responsible for ensuring complementarity between them. • Where a UN Disaster Management Team (DMT) exists at Country Representative level, the HC or, in the absence of an HC, the RC is responsible for avoiding duplication with the HCT.

8. Interface with other in-country coordination mechanisms • Whenever possible the HCT complements government-led coordination structures. • The HCT interfaces with the UN Security Management Team as appropriate. • In the transition phase, if the HCT is maintained, the HC or, in the absence of an HC position, the RC is responsible for ensuring complementarity with other coordination mechanisms.

9. THE HCT IN NIGERIA • Established 19 Sept, 2012. • Chaired by the RC • Open participation (UN, NGOs, donors and government) • Meets every two months and more frequently in line with increasing humanitarian needs e.g HCT has met three times in two months and twice in one week

10. HCT & Coordination structures in Nigeria • The HCT: Head of UN Agencies, Head of humanitarian NGOs, ICRC, MSF, donors • The National Humanitarian Coordination Forum: Open to all Government of Nigeria NEMA, Head of UN Agencies, NGO representatives, Sectors/Co-leads • Inter-sector Coordination Group/IA-EPRWG: Technical team from UN agencies and NGOs • Monthly Humanitarian Operational Brief: Open to all actors except the government) This forum is convened monthly for information sharing, to approach partnership with the GoN with common approaches • Sector Working Groups (SWG): Co-lead by UN/NGOs and GoN • Sub-national/State Inter-Sector Coordination for the NE: Team configured. Workshop and Capacity building in June

11. Challenges to the HCT in its present structure in Nigeria • Participation not fixed (Includes development and humanitarian partners) • NGO participation not representative of a consortium • Participation without commitment to the existing coordination structures; i.e information sharing etc • Sometimes acts as an information sharing forum

12. Key Questions • How should the membership of the HCT be composed to ensure effectiveness? • How should accountability by agencies be measured? • How should HCT engage the Government in the face of deteriorating humanitarian situation?