The Emergency Capacity Building (ECB) Project's overall objective is to improve the speed, quality and effectiveness of the humanitarian sector's ability to save lives, protect livelihoods and defend the rights of disaster-vulnerable communities.
The ECB Project also aims to collaborate on organisational and staff capacity development in the following thematic areas:
What is Oxfam's involvement?
1. Oxfam leads a country-level consortium in Bolivia
The Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies in Bolivia consists of the national staff of nine international NGOs (ACH, CARE, Christian Aid, CRS, HelpAge, Oxfam, Plan International, Save the Children, and World Vision) who work together with local partners on joint approaches to capacity building, emergency preparedness and response, and coordination with the wider sector
Oxfam provides technical support from our global and regionally-based advisers (on accountability to beneficiaries, impact measurement, disaster risk reduction, and humanitarian capacity development), as well as fundraising and financial management support.
The Bolivia consortium is proactive in seeking funds for joint initiatives, while Oxfam funds core costs and contributes further funding for specific activities. For more on the collaborations of the Consortium in Bolivia visit: www.ecbproject.org/Bolivia
2. Oxfam leads global-level interagency projects on behalf of ECB agencies
Oxfam leads on joint global activities, such as a partnership with the University of East Anglia which is examining how to measure the 'contribution of change' of humanitarian interventions on households affected by rapid onset emergencies. This project is researching, piloting and developing a guide to measure the impact of aid agencies' programmes and the key priority is to develop a methodology and supporting tools that are simple and effective in providing credible evidence of the changes brought about by humanitarian
interventions.
The ECB Project's 'field first' approach is being utilised in the development and piloting on the methodology and tools, in partnership with ECB agencies. By June 2012 field tests will have been held in India, Guatemala and Sri Lanka to ensure the Guide is practical and useful for field staff.
The project is being funded by DFID with the ultimate aim of increased impact of humanitarian interventions, directly benefitting the children, women and men affected by rapid onset natural disasters. The Guide will provide an innovative methodology for measuring the contribution to change, guidance on how to analyse collected data, along with practical and field tested tools for humanitarian NGOs, United Nations agencies and donors. It will help agencies to ensure better quality and more needs based humanitarian responses, through strengthened evidence on which to base decision-making
and reporting. The Guide is anticipated to be published and disseminated in 2013.
3. Oxfam mainstreams ECB Project approaches and shares learning
The ECB Project provides Oxfam with a focus and a collaboration platform to continue to develop our organisational and staff capacity to deliver high-quality, appropriate and effective preparedness and emergency response programmes within high-risk countries, alongside other agencies.
We seek to integrate successful approaches and tools from the ECB Project within our own organisation and also share Oxfam experiences openly with our ECB colleagues, in order to learn from one another.
The Building Trust in Diverse Teams facilitation handbook is an example of an ECB tool that Oxfam uses widely in staff development.
One unexpected area of learning has been around fundraising in consortium for joint agency capacity development initiatives. We have captured the ECB Project's learning in a case study which is available in English, French and Spanish. This has been shared widely with our funding teams around the world, as well as with the other ECB agencies.