Coordination of Humanitarian Responses in Latin America and the Caribbean - OCHA 2017

March 2017 – The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ (OCHA) primary mandate is to oversee the coordination of international humanitarian responses in partnership with national and international actors in order to achieve more coherent and effective humanitarian action. This grant represents Canada's regional support to OCHA in Latin America and the Caribbean. With the support of Canada and other donors OCHA fulfills its mandate by: (1) strengthening humanitarian leadership; (2) establishing and overseeing coordination systems; (3) monitoring and reporting on humanitarian situations; (4) advocating on behalf of affected people; (5) supporting the assessment and prioritization of humanitarian needs and strategic planning; (6) promoting emergency preparedness; and (7) mobilizing funding for humanitarian assistance.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) strengthened humanitarian leadership and coordination systems; (2) enhanced monitoring and reporting on humanitarian situations; (3) enhanced advocacy on behalf of affected populations; (4) strengthened assessment and prioritization of humanitarian needs and strategic planning; (5) improved emergency preparedness; and (6) increased funding for humanitarian assistance. The expected ultimate outcome is reduced vulnerability of crisis-affected people especially women and children.