Consideration of Humanitarian Assistance Coordination Mechanisms for Health Actors in Large-Scale Emergencies

BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT 

The importance of multisectoral collaboration during any large-scale disasters (including public health emergencies) cannot be overstated. The workshop will examine and discuss several types of coordination mechanisms that may take place during a large-scale disaster requiring multisectoral collaboration and specifically: 1) The Role of UN in Coordinating Humanitarian Assistance; 2) UN Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination (UN-CMCoord); 3) Regional Coordination in the Asia Pacific through the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre); 4) U.S. Foreign Humanitarian Assistance and Civilian-Military Coordination. A mutual understanding between Health & Humanitarian/Disaster Relief actors is imperative in support of a coordinated response during large-scale emergencies. 

WORKSHOP FORMAT 

Lecture-based presentation followed by interactive facilitated discussion and/or Q&A session

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Learning objectives for this workshop are: 

1. To understand and bring awareness of international and regional humanitarian and public health emergency coordination mechanisms 

2. To understand the various actors involved and their roles during a disaster coordination

FACILITATORS:

1. Rudi Coninx is the Senior Policy Adviser to the Assistant-Director General for Emergency Response at WHO. He leads the unit that provides policy guidance and support for operations in disasters and emergencies, coordinates with interagency bodies such as the IASC (Inter-Agency Standing Committee) and translates policy into practice. A medical doctor from Belgium, Dr Coninx graduated from the University of Leuven (Belgium) in 1982. He holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Baltimore (USA) and a Diploma in Tropical Medicine from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp (Belgium). Dr Coninx has worked extensively in humanitarian emergencies since 1983, with MSF (Médecins sans Frontières) on missions in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Thailand, with the United Nations Border Relief Operation (UNBRO) as health coordinator at the Thai-Cambodian border, with WHO in Pakistan and Afghanistan during Operation Salam, and with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the field as health coordinator in Sudan, Ethiopia, Mexico (Chiapas), Mozambique, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, as well as with the ICRC in Geneva as technical advisor for public health programs. He joined WHO in Geneva in 2008 and has been working in the department responsible for managing emergencies in various capacities.

2. Representative (TBC), ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management

3. Representative (TBC), Center for Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance

PARTICIPANTS:

General

Maximum number: 60