- DECEMBER NEWSLETTER -GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY CLUSTERCOUNTRY UPDATES gFSC/Welthungerhilfe video project in Mali and Bangladesh 2016-2017 ”Local partners speak the language, know local customs and are close to the people affected by the crisis.“ - Karamoko Sidibe, Welthungerhilfe Co-Chair, Food Security Cluster Mali Local NGOs need to be strengthened in particular in humanitarian settings. That is why the global Food Security Cluster and the German-based international NGO Welthungerhilfe came together to work on a joint video project with the support from the German Federal Foreign Office. Two videos have been completed which present the different cultural and humanitarian contexts of Mali and Bangladesh. The third video of a country in the Middle East Region will follow in 2017. This unique project focuses on the added value and advantage of coordinating and partnering with local actors in sudden onset disasters and protracted crises. The protagonists in the video are local actors in the South as well as international stakeholders who reflect on the following questions: · Why is coordination important? · How can local partners support to strengthen coordination and response? · What advantage do local actors have in comparison to other actors? This video project further explores the story about the important role local actors play in the Food Security Cluster in emergency response. The gFSC/Welthungerhilfe videos will be available at the beginning of 2017. They will be used as a tool to raise awareness, create dialogue and strengthen participation of local actors in country clusters. gFSC Trainings and Technical support GenCap mission, 13-27 August, Dakar, Senegal Empowering West African women through market-based food assistance Crisis and conflict situations have a different impact on men, women, girls and boys who are not confronted with the same risks to the same degree. The objective of the gFSC GenCap mission to Senegal was to support WFP and FAO technical teams in reviewing different tools by applying a gender lens. The GenCap expert supported the review of the regional pilot study on gender and markets led by WFP’s Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM) team of the Regional Bureau for West and Central Africa (RBD). The country case studies are available for Senegal, the Lake Chad Basin, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Cameroon. The products of this pilot study will greatly contribute to more detailed analyses of gender-specific needs and priorities in Sahel countries and will support the ability of Food Security Clusters in the region to formulate gender-sensitive objectives of food security responses. Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Training for Cluster Coordinators, 05-08 December, Rome, Italy The IPC is a key tool for Food Security Clusters. It provides key technical information which is then utilised when formulating food security response plans. The gFSC and the IPC team partnered to hold an IPC Level 1 training workshop for Food Security Cluster Coordinators. In many countries where the IPC is used, the analysis provided is integrated in the Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) and in the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP). With the accelerating adoption of the IPC around the world, there is a growing demand for IPC experts with demonstrated knowledge of the IPC approach and tools. That is why more than twenty Food Security Cluster Coordinators, Co-Coordinators and Information Management Officers were trained on the tool. Cluster Coordinators’ training, 13-17 December, Dakar, Senegal Preparing a pool of competent Food Security Cluster Coordinators In line with results 1 and 3 of the gFSC Strategic Plan 2015-16, the gFSC organized a cluster coordinator training in Dakar to further strengthen national clusters' capacity and to enhance the capacity of the gFSC to deploy trained cluster coordinators, in particular to francophone countries. This one week tailor-made training provided participants with an opportunity to better understand their roles and responsibilities before, during and after a Level 3 emergency following the Humanitarian Programme Cycle (HPC). This unique learning process, which includes a simulation, requires that participants practice key Cluster Coordinator roles and responsibilities and use experiential learning to explore what attitudes, knowledge and skills are most helpful to best undertake the role of Cluster Coordinator in a real Level 3 emergency or disaster situation. For the first time, this training was held in French to ensure that a pool of high profile coordinators will be ready for deployment to francophone countries. Global Partners’ Meeting, 29-30 November 2016, Rome, Italy Moving from coordination to collaboration in 2017-2019 The eleventh Global Partners Meeting of the global Food Security Cluster (gFSC) was held at WFP Headquarters from 29 to 30 November 2016 in Rome, Italy. The meeting brought together about 60 participants and observers representing more than 30 partner institutions and one country cluster. The overall purpose of the meeting was to review the work of the Global Food Security Cluster (gFSC) as well as to discuss emerging strategic issues, in particular the progress made after the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) and the Grand Bargain. Key outcomes identified during the meeting are important building blocks for the gFSC Strategic Plan 2017-2019. Global Protection Cluster (September 2016): Checklist on incorporating Protection and Accountability to Affected Populations in the Humanitarian Programme Cycle Inter-Agency Standing Committee (October 2016): Inter-Agency Community-Based Complaint mechanism, including Protection against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse |