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OCHA: "The mission of the Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is to mobilize and coordinate
effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with
national and international actors in order to:
i) alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies;
ii) advocate for the rights of people in need;
iii) promote preparedness and prevention; and
iv) facilitate sustainable solutions."
As
with all UN bodies, the work of the OCHA-Ethiopia is governed
by the universal principles of neutrality, impartiality, access to
those in need, accountability, respect for human rights and
multilateralism. During the civil war, the office actively
promoted the use of relief corridors (land and air) through
contested areas and was instrumental in negotiating the southern
and northern line operations that took emergency supplies into
rebel held areas of Welo, Tigrai and Eritrea in the latter months
of the war. Today, the office promotes transparency and
accountability in the work of the United Nations in Ethiopia by
facilitating the free exchange of information and promoting the
critical examination of relief and development practices in the
field.
The
need for a rapid and flexible response to emergencies has been an
imperative for the United Nations ever since the 1984 famine in
Ethiopia. Much of the responsibility for ensuring that an
appropriate level of readiness exists within the system has been
decentralized and invested in the Resident Coordinator system.
Today, the work of the office is geared to supporting
the Resident Coordinator in meeting these responsibilities,
emphasizing the management and dissemination of early warning
information, assessment of relief needs, support for inter-agency
collaboration, donor relations and resource mobilization.
The work of OCHA- Ethiopia can be split
into two main categories: field monitoring and information
activities. Field Monitors assess emergency relief needs (in
co-operation with donors and the DPPC), facilitating and
coordinating
the humanitarian response of the UN system in Ethiopia and an
Information Team provides a public information service on behalf
of the both the UN and wider aid community.
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