From Theory to Practice: A Study of Remotely Managed Localised Humanitarian Action in Syria

Abstract

With unique strengths, problems, and challenges, localisation is an increasingly important modality for humanitarian relief. Based on the primary research including interviews with practitioners who are expert and experienced in localisation and remote management in Syria, the article offers an important case study of remote management during conflict, with analysis of local staff adherence to humanitarian principles and standards, local access and acceptance in conflict zones, the dynamics between international and local organisations and staff, the transfer of decision making from international nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) to local NGOs, and the potential risks involved. It argues that localisation has inherent strengths due to the social advantages of local staff but lacks sufficient institutional support from the international humanitarian system and that there are ethical and legal problems with transferring risk and security considerations for local NGOs.

’We are trying to live in a normal way, but nothing is normal about us anymore…’: a qualitative study of women’s lived experiences of healthcare in opposition-controlled areas of Syria

“…OCAs remain insecure, having undergone frequent governance shifts and fragmentation during years of conflict 1 9 11 43 47 48. Women’s accounts suggested potential opportunities in healthcare spaces, particularly in increased demand and broadened roles for women health workers.…”

Toward a Third Local Turn: Identifying and Addressing Obstacles to Localization in Peacebuilding

“…As noted, the humanitarian and development localization agenda is treated generally as beginning in the 1990s. Since then, the norm has meandered through dozens of guidelines, declarations, and plans for action, gradually attracting stronger statements of support and occasionally even concrete commitments (see Table One), which have led to only very modest reforms (Pyles 2017; Elkahlout and Elgibali 2020; Pincock, Betts, and Easton‐Calabria 2021; Khan and Kontinen 2022). In 1996, the OECD identified localization as the core pillar of a more efficient aid system (Mateos and Solà‐Martín 2022).…”

“…This is particularly true for women peacebuilders (Anderlini 2020; Holmes, Anderlini, and Schamber 2020). It follows that establishing an effective and context‐sensitive protection regime is a prerequisite for the ability of local peacebuilders to move around freely and do their work, and thereby take the lead on peacebuilding activities (Elkahlout and Elgibali 2020).…”

“…Northern donors prefer to keep tight oversight of the funds they disseminate and only fund counterparts on the ground whom they trust, that is, sophisticated elite organizations (Cohen 2014;Duckworth 2016;Elkahlout and Elgibali 2020). The risk aversion of Northern donors has incentivized them to exclude local partners from financial administration activities around peacebuilding interventions in some countries (Paffenholz et al 2011).…”

Humanitarian ignorance: towards a new paradigm of non‐knowledge in digital humanitarianism

“…International non‐governmental organisations (NGOs) rely on expatriates that often move between humanitarian disasters, becoming experts in humanitarian crisis rather than a specific humanitarian context. While local staff are frequently presented rhetorically as crucial to the humanitarian effort, the Syrian humanitarian crisis illustrates how, even during a protracted emergency, under‐investment in high‐quality technical capacity‐building of local staff pushes them into a position of precarity that can hinder organisational learning (Elkahlout and Elgibali, 2020). This can be deepened by the increased bureaucratisation of humanitarian organisations that centralises decision‐making.…”