Humanitarian assistance: standards, skills, training, and experience

doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7501.1199

BMJ 2005;330:1199-1201 (21 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7501.1199

Clinical review

ABC of conflict and disaster

Humanitarian assistance: standards, skills, training, and experience

Marion Birch, Simon Miller

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Standards for humanitarian agencies

Those affected by catastrophe and conflicts often lose basichuman rights. Recognising this, a group of humanitarian non-governmentalorganisations and the Red Cross movement launched the SphereProject in 1997. The aim of this project was to improve thequality of assistance and enhance the accountability of thehumanitarian system in disaster response by developing a setof universal minimum standards in core areas and a humanitariancharter.

Refugee camp in Darfur, Sudan, 1985. Refugees from the drought and conflict in Chad had been brought by truck from further up the border between Chad and Sudan before the rains came, so that they would not be cut off from outside aid during the rainy season

The charter, based on international treaties and conventions,emphasises the right of people affected by disaster to lifewith dignity. It identifies the protection of this right asa quality measure of humanitarian work and . . . [Full text of this article]