1. Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process
Workshop Title
Workshop Location
Date
Facilitator’s Name
Session Design:
Inter-Agency Standing Committee
Sub-Working Group on Preparedness and Contingency Planning

2. Session Overview Time (min) 1. Introduction10
1. Introduction 30
2. Key Concepts of Inter-Agency Contingency Planning 30
3. Exercise: Levels of Contingency Planning 20
4. The Inter-Agency Contingency Planning Process
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

3. Focus of this session
Effective humanitarian action requires planning at several levels:
This session will focus on the role of Inter-Agency Contingency Planning in effective humanitarian action
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning
It is important to stress that the focus of this session is on inter-agency contingency planning, not all levels and not contingency planning in general.
Organizational Planning
Sector / Cluster Planning
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

4. Why contingency plan? Enhance the quality of humanitarian response!
There are many good reasons why organizations should contingency plan:
Time
Deal with anticipated problems before the onset of a crisis
Put in place measures that enhance preparedness
Enhance the quality of humanitarian response!
Relationships
Establish relationships with partners
Develop shared understanding of common challenges
Clarify roles and responsibilities
Strengthen coordination mechanisms
The slide is animated, starting with only the tag line.
Facilitator’s option:
Ask the audience to cite some of the benefits of contingency planning. If you can do it without slowing things down, capture them on a flip chart so you can reference their thoughts later in the session.
The benefits should fall into one of 3 categories: Time, Relationships, Effectiveness. (Efficiency may come up which could be captured in those 3 categories).
Examples of the benefits are provided with each category. The audience may have already cited some of these. If there are benefits they cited which are not on here, you may want to acknowledge them and indicate which category they contribute to.
Concluding message: These benefits are just part of the picture. The overarching benefit is to enhance the quality of the humanitarian response. It is important to always keep this goal in mind when you are engaged in a contingency planning process.
Effectiveness
Identify constraints to effective response actions
Focus on operational issues
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

5. What is contingency planning?
Contingency planning is a tool to anticipate and solve problems that typically arise during humanitarian response:
Analyse potential emergencies
Analyse potential impact
Establish clear objectives & strategies
Implement preparedness actions
Example:
Due to unusual weather patterns, Country X is at risk of large scale flooding this year
Example:
Up to 1.5 million people would be displaced from their homes and 50% of domestic crop production would be wiped out.
Example:
Maintaining people on their land and in their homes
Protecting the most fertile crop lands
Example:
Raise public awareness of preventive measures
Distribute emergency supplies in high risk areas
Create water diversion channels
Walk the audience through the phases of contingency planning. The animation gives a simple example of contingency planning.
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

6. When to Plan? The primary difference is the level of specificity
Preparedness Planning
Contingency Planning
Description
Establish standing capacity to respond to a range of situations that may affect a given country or region
It is a continuing activity for all Country Teams that should be reviewed regularly
Establish capacity to respond to a specific emerging or anticipated crisis
It is a discrete activity triggered by early warning systems
If the threat becomes chronic, it may be integrated into preparedness planning
Examples
Hurricane season in tropical areas
Chronic conflict zones
Pandemic influenza
Flooding in a not typically flood-prone region
Population displacement due to election violence
This is the key concept slide on the difference between contingency planning and preparedness planning. If a contingency event (e.g. a flood) becomes a chronic event, then flooding would become part of preparedness planning. An important step in either preparedness or contingency planning is a thorough multi-hazard analysis that reviews all of the threats/hazards that the country may face.
The primary difference is the level of specificity
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

7. What is inter-agency contingency planning?
Effective humanitarian action requires planning at several levels:
Function
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning
Organizational Planning
Defines specific organizational arrangements to deliver the services that the organization is committed to provide
Sector / Cluster Planning
Defines how organizations will work together to achieve sector specific objectives
Slide builds from Organizational Planning to Inter-Agency Planning. The following slide will provide example of these planning differences for the inter-agency and sector/cluster levels.
Organizational Planning: Defines specific organizational arrangements to deliver the services that the organization is committed to provide.
Sector / Cluster Planning: Defines how organizations will work together to achieve sector specific objectives
Inter-Agency Planning: Provides a common strategic planning framework & process to ensure alignment of humanitarian action to overarching principles and goals
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning
Provides a common strategic planning framework & process to ensure alignment of humanitarian action to overarching principles and goals
Organizational Planning
Sector / Cluster Planning
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

8. Elements of inter-agency contingency planning
Sector / Cluster Planning
Elements
Elements
Common analysis, risk & vulnerability assessment
Scenarios & planning assumptions
Agreed planning figures
Overall objectives & strategies
Overall management & coordination arrangements
Linkages with government
Sector objectives & strategies
Needs assessment & analysis
Capacity & response commitments
Standards for response
Monitoring & reporting
This slide distinguishes between inter-agency and sector/cluster planning. Past experience shows that it is between these levels that there has been the highest amount of confusion.
The slides gives some elements and some examples of planning on the two levels (inter-agency first, followed by sector/cluster). The full list of elements can be found on page 8 of the guidelines (Table 1).
You may wish to prepare a specific example that you can talk confidently about in order to give more texture / illustration to the elements and examples.
Examples
Examples
Monitoring probability of emerging crisis
Projected # of people threatened by the emerging crisis
Objective to maintain people in their present location by providing supplies
Establishment of 6 Clusters
Negotiating access with government
Sector targets, e.g. in health, food, shelter, etc.
Vulnerability assessments
Application of sphere standards
Information management
Monitoring & reporting
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

9. Who’s involved? Who should be involved? Who leads?
All who will be required to work together in the event of an emergency, including government whenever possible.
Working groups and information sharing mechanisms should be established to ensure the planning process remains manageable and effective.
Who leads?
The Resident / Humanitarian Coordinator is responsible for providing overall strategic leadership to the inter-agency contingency planning process.
All members of the Humanitarian Country Team, in particular those with sector / cluster leadership responsibilities, are expected to ensure adequate coordination during the planning process within their respective sectors / clusters and agencies / organizations.
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

10. Strong coordination and process management
The planning process
The inter-agency contingency planning process is organized around four basic components:
Preparation
Analysis
Response Planning
Implementing Preparedness
A C T I O N S
Prepare for and organize the inter-agency contingency planning process
Analyze hazards and risks, build scenarios and develop planning assumptions
Define response objectives & strategies
Define management & coordination arrangements
Develop & consolidate response plans
Enhance preparedness and continue the planning process
This overview is drawn from the guidelines, page 12, table 2.
In addition to the four phases, it is important to emphasize the underlying strong coordination and process management required to make contingency planning work well.
Strong coordination and process management
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

11. Success criteria for IA contingency plans
Commitment
Dedicated leadership
Appropriate resources
Investment in planning process, not just planning document
Failure in any one area diminishes the quality of the contingency planning process and results.
Execution
Effective leadership
Clear management and coordination
Prioritization of key issues
Appropriate delegation to sector / cluster level
Clear process and milestones
Continuous communication
Inclusion
This slide is animates, starting with a blank screen.
Facilitator’s option:
Before advancing with content, ask the audience why they think contingency plans succeed or fail. If you can do it without slowing things down, capture them on a flip chart so you can reference their thoughts.
The criteria should fall into one of 4 categories: commitment, execution, inclusion and follow up.
Examples are provided with each category. The audience may have already cited some of these. If there are criteria they cited which are not on here, you may want to acknowledge them and indicate which category they contribute to.
Concluding message: Inter-Agency Contingency planning is often undertaken with multiple stakeholders in a difficult working environment, with short time frames and lots of pressure. Ensuring that these elements are in place can help to contribute to a successful outcome. Failure to get each of these criteria right can result in diminished planning outcomes. This can lead to less effective humanitarian operation when the crisis does occur.
Engagement of all stakeholders
Inclusion of government in meaningful role
Effective information sharing
Follow up
Taking action on planning recommendations
Integration of contingency plans at sector and organizational levels
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

12. Background & Reference
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

13. About the Guidelines
A number of agencies had developed very good internal guidance on contingency planning. However, there was no reference document or standards for how to contingency plan on an inter-agency basis.
First version of IASC Inter-Agency Contingency Planning Guidelines developed in 2001.
Intervening years have seen an expansion in inter-agency contingency planning:
2001: approximately 15 inter-agency contingency plans in existence
2007: approximately 250 inter-agency contingency plans in existence
The drafting of the first version of the guidelines was one of the initial projects pursued by the sub-working group on preparedness and contingency planning in the first few years of its existence.
While a number of agencies had developed very good internal guidance on contingency planning, there was no reference document for how to organize and pursue contingency planning on an inter-agency basis.
Since 2002 when the original guidelines were endorsed, we have seen a huge expansion in the practice of inter-agency contingency planning. For example in 2001 there were about 15 inter-agency contingency plans in existence, in 2007 there are upwards of 250 on record
The revision process sought to build on the strengths of the existing guidelines which were perceived to be clear, simple and easy to understand, and to reflect the accumulated good practice in inter-agency contingency planning and critical elements of humanitarian reform, specifically the cluster approach.
Revision of the guidelines was initiated in February of 2007 to:
Reflect accumulated good practice
Include key elements of humanitarian reform, specifically the cluster approach.
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

14. For more information and assistance
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning Guidelines
Prepared by the IASC Sub Working Group on Preparedness and Contingency Planning
Published November 2007
Active Networks
There are active inter-agency networks in many regions that include staff from a range of humanitarian agencies that can provide advice or facilitation experience
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

15. Contingency Planning Reference
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning Guidelines for Humanitarian Assistance, November 2007 (Available in English Spanish, French and Arabic)
IASC Sub-Working Group on Preparedness and Contingency Planning. Challenges and Suggestions for Enhancing Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Report of the 1st Global Consultation of Contingency Planners in Humanitarian Agencies. 2-4 July, 2007.
Available at: or
Choularton, Richard. Contingency Planning and Humanitarian Action: A Review of Practice. HPN Network Paper No. 59, March Available at:
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process

16. Thank you!
Thank the participants. Ask if there are any last questions or unaddressed issues that were raised in the session.
If this session is not part of a larger workshop, you may want to solicit feedback, in writing or verbally, on the effectiveness of the session and what more they would like to learn about inter-agency contingency planning.
Inter-Agency Contingency Planning: Concepts & Process