U.S. Army Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute
U.S. Army War College
22 Ashburn Drive, Upton Hall
Carlisle Barracks, PA 17013
10 Dec 2015
SUBJECT: Foreign Humanitarian Assistance: Concepts, Principles,
and Applications
1. GENERAL
Foreign Humanitarian Assistance operations often involve a broad mix of
participants: USG civilian and military organizations, coalition partners, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), international actors, and host nation (HN)
government authorities. Accordingly, “civil-military interaction” and “unity of
effort” are vital to success – key to saving lives and restoring/raising the social
well-being of the HN population.
Within this report, certain lessons emphasize the “concepts and principles” of
FHA – such as unity of effort, comprehensive approach, host nation ownership,
partnering, anti-corruption, transparency, accountability, cultural understanding,
and inclusivity. Other lessons in this report focus on specific “applications” of
FHA – interventions/programs to address the humanitarian needs of communities
in Angola, Sierra Leone, Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya, Sri Lanka, and numerous
Pacific Island nations. Key recommendations and guidelines drawn from these
experiences are delineated on pages 42-44.
2. LESSONS
a. TOPIC. Humanitarian Assistance and Social Well-Being: Precluding
Exploitation and Corruption ( 1083 )
Observation.
The provision of humanitarian aid can evolve into a situation where locally
recruited personnel, entrusted with the responsibility of aid distribution, engage in
corrupt and abusive practices.
Discussion.
From Angola, Sierra Leone, and Sudan mission experiences, I came to understand how provision of humanitarian aid can evolve into a situation where locally
recruited personnel, entrusted with the responsibility of aid distribution, engage in
corrupt and abusive practices against their own nationals – abusing the privilege
of distributing aid on behalf of international agencies.
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