Humanitarian Response to Strengthen Food Security Coordination - FAO 2019

January 2019 - Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation persistent food and income insecurity and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence. With GAC’s support the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) supports the food security sector coordination platform to ensure the effective coordination of food security-related interventions pursued by national and international organizations in the West Bank and Gaza. Project activities include: (1) engaging food security actors in sharing information on planning priorities and findings and assessing gaps and areas of duplication; (2) building the capacity of organizations working in the food security sector in implementing gender-sensitive programming by providing these organizations with training technical advice and analyses on gender-related issues in food security; (3) contributing to inter-sectorial coordination by identifying needs and response modalities that may require harmonized inter-cluster responses; and (4) rolling out the resilience marking exercise for the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan for the West Bank and Gaza.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) strengthened coordination and prioritization of humanitarian and development interventions with a focus on avoiding duplication; increasing efficiency and effectiveness of food security-related financial aid; and sharing information including sex-disaggregated and gender-sensitive findings; (2) improved quality of services received by Palestinians involved in food security sector interventions at all stages with a focus on gender equality; (3) improved information analysis focusing on resilience building and disaster risk reduction; and (4) inclusion of root causes of food insecurity in advocacy initiatives. The expected ultimate outcome is lives saved suffering alleviated and human dignity maintained in countries experiencing humanitarian crises or acute food insecurity.