GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS OF ACTION
The actions of the HAO are
linked to the principle of need; the geographical criterion applied in the
field of development is not applicable to the allocation of Humanitarian Action
resources.
Even so, current budgetary
conditions in Spain have forced attention to be focused on a smaller number of
humanitarian crises, always keeping in mind the needs of the most vulnerable
populations, generating added value and identifying synergies between
development projects and humanitarian projects.
The five areas of focus in
terms of the volume of funds are:
- The regional crisis in
Syria and Iraq.
- The Sahel and Lake Chad.
- Sahrawi refugee camps.
- The Palestinian
Territories.
- Latin America and the
Caribbean (Colombia/Venezuela, disaster readiness and response, vulnerable
people in transit in northern Central America).
SECTOR FOCUS
In order to increase the
effectiveness of AECID's humanitarian action, the Humanitarian Action Office
has traditionally worked in four key sectors for action:
- Food
and nutrition security: food assistance
(preferably through cash transfers or vouchers) and prevention and
treatment of malnutrition, especially in breastfeeding women and
under-fives.
- Water
and sanitation: focusing on emergency
response (drinking water treatment, water supply) and prevention of risk
vectors (treatment, rehabilitation, usage of water resources).
- Health: healthcare in emergencies and particularly
maternal and infant health.
- Protection: focusing on protecting victims of humanitarian
crises, and particularly refugees, displaced persons, minors, older
people, people with disabilities, vulnerable women and other vulnerable
groups, such as members of the LGTBI community, in certain contexts.
In addition, other sectors
will continue to be reinforced, including disaster readiness and safe areas,
and work will begin on education in emergencies.
Our humanitarian action has
echoed the need for gender mainstreaming. In this regard, our action
prioritizes funding of projects with IASC gender markers 2a and 2b or ECHO
gender marker 2, i.e. projects that fully integrate the considerations of
gender and age or which make significant contributions to gender equality. In
addition, our humanitarian action supports the joint work and the funding of
local women's organizations and associations.