OCHA on Message: Civil-Military Coordination [EN/AR]

What is United Nations Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination?

When an emergency or natural disaster creates humanitarian needs, many countries will deploy their militaries or paramilitary organizations to respond. Bilateral support to disaster-affected States can also be provided through international deployment of foreign military actors and assets. When local and international humanitarian organizations are also involved in that response, it is essential that they can operate in the same space without detriment to the civilian character of humanitarian assistance.

It is for this reason that United Nations Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination (UNCMCoord) facilitates dialogue and interaction between civilian and military actors—essential for protecting and promoting humanitarian principles, avoiding competition, minimizing inconsistency and, when appropriate, pursuing common goals.

UN-CMCoord is a framework that enhances a broad understanding of humanitarian action, and guides political and military actors on how best to support that action.

It helps to develop contextspecific policy based on internationally agreed guidelines, and it establishes humanitarian civil-military coordination structures, ensuring staff members are trained to make that coordination work. UNCMCoord is particularly essential in complex emergencies and high-risk environments in order to facilitate humanitarian access, the protection of civilians and the security of humanitarian aid workers.