iMMAP’S STANDBY PARTNERSHIP
With the support from USAID, since 2012 iMMAP has been an official Standby Partner to United Nations agencies, providing skilled and experienced human resources in humanitarian emergencies. Through the iMMAP Roster of rapidly deployable information management experts, we provide surge capacity support in emergency operations.
In times of emergency, one of the challenges responders face is a lack of reliable, vetted data on which to base decisions. This lack of accurate data can have a direct impact on the lives and livelihoods of beneficiaries as it affects the correct allocation and delivery of scarce financial and material resources, impeding the development of a clear common operating picture, and impacting the formulation of effective response strategy and policy.
To ensure professional management of humanitarian data, highly skilled information management officers (IMOs) are called upon to improve the quality, timeliness, use, and sharing of critical humanitarian response data. Over the years, iMMAP has provided surge support personnel through the Standby Partnership to facilitate the response to multiple natural and human-caused disasters.
STANDBY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMME MECHANISM
The Standby Partnership Programme mechanism (SBP mechanism) provides surge capacity support to United Nations agencies responding to humanitarian emergencies through the secondment of “experts on mission” by external partner organizations. The SBP mechanism functions through a series of bilateral agreements between participating UN Agencies, OCHA and a number of surge providers (Standby Partners) that are composed of a diverse group of NGOs, donors, private sectors, foundations and government agencies.
The Standby Partnership Network (SBP Network) began as an initiative of organizations from the SBP mechanism in order to provide “high-quality personnel consistently available for support to humanitarian action through organizational engagement and collective preparedness.” Currently, the SBP Network engages with its member organizations on a membership basis to which any organization acting as a Standby Partner to a participating UN Agency and/or OCHA is automatically included.
In the SBP Network, there are currently 15 participating UN Agencies and 54 Standby Partners that regularly contribute to the SBP Network initiatives through in-kind and financial support, and/or through their participation in the Working Groups, the Steering Committee, and engagement with the Secretariat members.
OUR PARTNERS
iMMAP currently maintains partnerships with nine United Nations agencies:
- United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
- United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
- United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
- International Organization for Migration (IOM)
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
- World Food Programme (WFP)
iMMAP’S STANDBY PARTNERSHIP DEPLOYMENTS
The humanitarian system needs access to qualified IM and specialized technical resources rapidly to support the demands of humanitarian emergencies. There has been a steady increase in the demand for IMOs since iMMAP’s involvement in the Standby Partnership in 2012. However, limited available resources only allowed to support a fraction of the requests received.
Through iMMAP’s Global Standby Partnership, over the past three years, iMMAP received over 400 requests from our nine UN Partners, responding to 59 of those requests.
Requests vs Deployments
Deployments by UN Agency
FROM THE FIELD
TROPICAL CYCLONE IDAI: THE ROLE OF AN INFORMATION MANAGEMENT OFFICER DURING A LEVEL 3 EMERGENCY
On March 19, 2019, Tropical Cyclone Idai, one of the worst tropical cyclones to strike Africa and the Southern Hemisphere, came on top of weeks of heavy rains, causing destruction and damage in Inhambane, Manica, Sofala, Tete and Zambezia provinces of Mozambique. The impact of Cyclone Idai and subsequent flooding resulted in an estimated 1.85 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and protection.
Naomi Morris, a senior IMO with multiple deployments in conflict and post-disaster emergencies, was deployed by iMMAP to support the World Health Organization’s (WHO) relief operations.
Below is an explanation of what se experienced when she arrived in Beira, Mozambique, the city which bore the brunt of Cyclone Idai’s force:
The situation on the ground was extremely challenging for the affected population and the medical teams supporting them; health facilities had been cut-off by the cyclone and subsequent floods, hampering restocking of essential drugs and medical supplies in the health centers.
GEOGRAPHIC SUPPORT
Through our personnel deployments, iMMAP has provided extensive support to our partners in multiple humanitarian crises across all world regions:
PIN UNICEF: Iva Zimova
OCHA: Eve Sabbagh
OCHA:Eve Sabbagh
Fly and Dive
OCHA:Giles Clarke
OCHA:Rébar Jaff
OCHA:Vincent Tremeau
Antrakt2
WHO Somalia:Ismail Taxta
Number of Deployments per Region
Months of Support Provided
iMMAP IN ACTION
Health Cluster Engagement in Burkina Faso
Violence and unrest in Burkina Faso began in 2015, but the highest peak of the conflict in 2019 lead to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians with an estimated 1.4 million people unable to meet their health needs due to the presence of armed groups. The demand for health services continues to grow while attacks further diminish the number of fully operational health facilities.
In situations with a rapid escalation of humanitarian needs, standby partners such as iMMAP are essential to rapidly deploy highly skilled personnel to support the emergency work of WHO and the Health Cluster. Following the activation of the Burkina Faso Health Cluster, iMMAP sent surge support to respond to the expressed information management needs.
The analytical products produced and updated (contact list, sitrep, visuals, analysis of qualitative data) helped the cluster coordination and decision-making to meet the needs of the population. Through these products, WHO can identify the areas where they have to focus on and the people who must be taken into account quickly in the response according to the vulnerability criteria.
iMMAP’S SUPPORT TO HUMANITARIAN SECTORS
iMMAP provided support to humanitarian sectors/clusters through the secondment of IM specialists. The Food Security, Health, Nutrition, Shelter/CCCM/NFI, and WASH clusters all benefited from the technical expertise of iMMAP.
From 2018 to 2020, iMMAP collaborated with the Global Health Cluster, WHO, and other health partners by providing technical expertise to support health information management programs in humanitarian and development settings worldwide. Furthermore, iMMAP worked closely with the Global Health Cluster Coordinator (GHCC), the Standby Partner Focal Point, and WHO’s Health Information Management (HIM) Team to identify and meet health IM needs.
iMMAP deployed IM support for Health Clusters and related activities in Turkey, Afghanistan, the Philippines, Yemen, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan, Burkina Faso, and Somalia. Support was also provided to Health Sectors in Mali and Ethiopia and the second Ebola outbreak response in DRC.
From 2018 to 2020, iMMAP assisted OCHA by providing coordination expertise to support humanitarian programming across the world, mostly in the Americas. iMMAP deployed IM support in Panama, Venezuela, Haiti, Ethiopia, and others.
From 2018 to 2020, iMMAP supported the Food Security Cluster by providing technical expertise and personnel in programs across the world. iMMAP deployed IM support in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and supported the Food Security Cluster headquarters for the COVID-19 response.
From 2018 to 2020, iMMAP also supported Nutrition, WASH, and Shelter Clusters by providing expertise to information management programs in humanitarian settings worldwide. iMMAP deployed IM support in Venezuela. DRC, Somalia, and CAR.
In 2020, as the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was spreading globally, iMMAP seconded a larger number of IM experts to our partners since many of those deployments were conducted remotely, with lower costs associated. iMMAP also deployed national consultants where possible due to international travel bans. Because of COVID-19, in 2020 iMMAP mostly provided IM support to the Health Cluster and WHO, focusing our efforts in supporting the most pressing humanitarian response worldwide.
Deployments by Sector
Other: (UNSG High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement)
TYPES OF DEPLOYMENTS
Out of the 59 deployments provided as part of the Standby partnership, 33 of those were executed in 2020 alone. This was possible because most deployments were done virtually. Moreover, iMMAP found a flexible approach to remain operational during the COVID-19 international travel bans by deploying national consultants who were already in-country.
National Deployments vs International Deployments
A WORD FROM OUR DEPLOYEES
Gabriel Oduori
IMO seconded to FAO and the Food Security Cluster in Zimbabwe
We produce project reports and maps that visualize partner responses’ gaps and overlaps to avoid duplication of humanitarian assistance regarding food availability, access, and utilization issues. Consistent information sharing by partners facilitates project tracking and monitoring and ultimately results in evidence-based decision-making for strategic intervention and improved implementation.
Karol Ramirez
IMO seconded to UNICEF and the Nutrition Cluster in Venezuela
By producing visual information products in a clear and organized way, we communicate to users what data does not tell by itself. By visualizing the 2019 Nutrition Cluster indicators and achievements, the National Nutrition Institute of Venezuela (INN) was able to get a broad understanding of Nutrition Cluster implementation activities.
Richard Senoga
IMO seconded to WHO and the Health Cluster in Somalia
By designing simple, user-friendly online data collection tools, our support enables partners to report on their activities and allows the Health Cluster to make essential life-saving decisions with the right information.
Disclaimer:
iMMAP counted the SBP deployments according to the fiscal year, which is a one-year period used for reporting and budgeting, starting on October 1 and ending on September 30. While we are working towards synchronizing the way we record deployments with our UN Partners and other deploying agencies, deployment records may vary from agency to agency at the moment.
Better Data | Better Decisions | Better Outcomes
iMMAP’s mission is to harness the power of information to facilitate evidence-based decisions to improve people’s lives. Our services have facilitated informed and effective disaster risk management, emergency response, and development activities by enabling evidence-based decision making for cluster leads, nongovernmental organizations, United Nations agencies and government operations.
iMMAP is an international not-for-profit organization.
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