Futureproofing communication and engagement: key takeaways on collaboration in an evolving aid landscape

The CDAC Network Public Forum on 8 November 2022 brought together diverse experts from across the humanitarian–development nexus and beyond to discuss how we can work together to ensure that communication and engagement with communities is fit for the future.

Moderated by Palwashay Arbab (Head of Communications, Community World Service Asia) and Rosie Jackson (Director of Policy & Innovation, CDAC Network), the panel featured:

• Dana Pavlychko – CEO, United For Ukraine

• Haile Kassa Hailu – Refugee Outreach Coordinator, UNHCR Switzerland and Liechtenstein

• Rakesh Bharania – President, Tarian Innovation

• Louisa Seferis – Independent expert on social accountability 

Key takeaways

Understanding who stakeholders are is essential to maximise effective collaboration. Too often, we generalise using categories such as ‘local actors’, ‘private sector’, ‘diaspora’, ‘aid recipients’. Just as people affected by a crisis represent a cross section of society, so do all actors involved in a response.

• Spend time understanding what capacities already exist among stakeholders.
  “Recognition comes before collaboration” – Haile Kassa Kailu

• Invest time and resources in understanding how people want to communicate and participate – and protect funding for this.
  “It takes time to cultivate a connection that can last” – Haile Kassa Kailu

• This must go beyond rhetoric, and cannot just take place on humanitarian agencies’ terms.
  “We really don't understand the cultures of participation … how do people feel comfortable participating and engaging? That is a prerequisite for collaboration” – Louisa Seferis

• To gain a complete picture of capacities across a crisis, we must seek to understand all actors – not just those we want to collaborate with.
  “Especially in situations of conflict, the bad guys get to innovate, too” – Rakesh Bharania
  “Civil society can include everyone from the far right to the far left, and we need to remember that” – Louisa Seferis

Often the most powerful and effective collaborations come from ‘outside’ the formal architecture. These can be facilitated by prior connections and driven by different incentives.

• United For Ukraine is a good example of this: founded the day the Russian invasion began by people with no experience of the humanitarian sector but who instead came from tech, law and other diverse backgrounds.
  “This really helped everyone think outside the box … We collaborated with over 200 different companies and non-profits and work with around 500 pro bono lawyers internationally” – Dana Pavlychko

• Make room for different types of collaboration and participation: protect, and consider how to capitalise on, the agility of more informal arrangements.
  “We tend to want to formalise, capture and report on everything – but often the most meaningful participation is informal” – Louisa Seferis

• Invest in better understanding actors who add to the quality of communication and engagement – think less selfishly about our own CCE/AAP needs and prioritise the need of affected people to access rapid and reliable information.
  “Humanitarian resistance is not neutral. We need to have a much more nuanced lens on what humanitarian action means, and it can’t be rooted solely in documents that are 75–150 years old” – Rakesh Bharania  

Private sector actors are ready – but are we? Humanitarians are at once enthused and reticent about engaging with private sector actors, and this is particularly pertinent to the prevalence of digital technologies in both crises and crisis response. At times our unguarded use of technology puts us and affected people at risk. At others, the lack of mutual trust between private and humanitarian sectors limits opportunities.

• We must recognise that every crisis from now on will be data-driven: who receives assistance will depend on who is visible in the data.
  “Whose story is included and whose story is excluded from our data is really going to matter as to whether we are effective, equitable and just in our humanitarian responses” – Rakesh Bharania

• Build trust between private and humanitarian sectors through capacity bridging to increase capacity and understanding in both sectors. Invest in additional skills training that targets private sector providers.
  “These companies really do want to help, but coming into this world is very complicated and there’s no path to getting smart quickly. Bootstrapping partners for the mission is a missing capability” – Rakesh Bharania

• Remember that the opportunities are matched by risks and we need to be much better prepared for the future of digital technology.
  “Either we evolve and adapt, or we are not fit for purpose” – Rakesh Bharania