ABSTRACT
Humanitarian action takes place in contexts working against its success, such as armed conflicts, natural disasters and often international neglect. When most people hear the word 'humanitarian', a series of slogans and attention-grabbing logos come to mind, generally those of the well-financed non-governmental organisations (NGOs) headquartered in Europe and North America. They may also recall the Red Cross or Red Crescent organisations as well as the white land cruisers and branded tarps of the larger UN agencies, such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the World Food Programme (WFP). Some might even know a few large donors represented in the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Several development organisations have also taken on humanitarian tasks. The internal coherence of the humanitarian system has increasingly been tested, in particular the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), and the multi-mandate organisations.
