ECOSOC HAS closes with a call for more inclusive humanitarian action
By Elayne Wangalwa
Women are critical to the success of any humanitarian response. That was today’s message at the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Humanitarian Affairs Segment (HAS).
UN Deputy Relief Coordinator Joyce Msuya addressed the panel discussion 'Transformative Humanitarian Action – Women and Girls at the Centre of Prevention, Response and Protection,' during which she emphasized the need to “activate women’s leadership, participation and decision-making in humanitarian responses.”
She also noted: “Our focus on the needs of women and girls in humanitarian responses must be in proportion to the challenges they face.”
Panelist Sima Bahous, UN Women’s Executive Director, highlighted that women and girls in crises play significant roles as community mobilizers. But she pointed out: “Despite our collective agreement as to the centrality of women's organizations, they continue to be largely excluded across the humanitarian cycle, or included only as a token.”
Advocating for gender-transformative change, Sofia Sprechmann, the Secretary-General of CARE International, emphasized the need for foundational shifts: “We can’t keep expecting women to perform miracles with next to no resources, and if they have no voice and influence at the decision-making tables.”
On the sidelines
Speaking to OCHA on the sidelines of the event, Negina Yari, Chair of the Women's Advisory Group to the Humanitarian Country Team in Afghanistan, urged donors to support women. She stressed that strategies in Afghanistan should be based on “recommendations and engagement with Afghan women” for better outcomes and that women’s groups should be funded and their rights protected.
On Haiti, Guerda Previlon, Executive Secretary of IDEJEN (Initiative pour le Développement des Jeunes), appreciated that ECOSOC HAS provides a platform to prioritize women and girls. “It is my role as a woman, a mother and a member of the humanitarian team in Haiti to advocate for women, children and girls to have a better role in managing, planning and coordinating the humanitarian response.”
Closing ceremony
In her closing remarks, the President of ECOSOC, Ambassador Paula Narváez Ojeda, Permanent Representative of Chile to the UN in New York, urged everyone to reaffirm their commitment to support humanitarian efforts and anticipatory action. She also noted the support should ultimately “help countries and communities get back on track towards the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Closing the event, Msuya said: “The discussions this week have reaffirmed my belief that this is possible – that by putting humanity at the very heart of everything we do, we can put aside division and confront today’s challenges together, bound by a common understanding of our shared humanity.”