As a follow up to the World Humanitarian Action Forum (WHAF) held in October 2019, we are committed to continuing to strengthen the connectivity, cooperation and dialogue within the humanitarian aid sector. Our aim is to protect the sector and contribute to making it fit for purpose.

At times of major global crises, change is inevitable and questions need to be asked. COVID-19 has indeed changed the way the world works.

  • Could COVID-19 be the latest opportunity for the much-needed change to happen in the aid sector too?
  • How do we reimagine aid through the “core responsibilities” that were set out in the “Agenda for Humanity”?

The acknowledgement to give greater control to local groups has seen little progress and during this crisis there are examples of local actors who did and continue to do much of the work and take the risk but were given very little if any credit or direct funding to do so.

  • How will our leadership responses to the economic and geopolitical shift and the narrative of global economic trends shape the future of aid and humanitarian financing in particular?
  • What should the humanitarian space and aid sector in general look like and more importantly feel like?