Multilateral Aid Review summary - Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO)

ECHO is the humanitarian arm of the European Commission. ECHO acts independently within the European Commission and it has a field presence in fragile states and regions in crisis independent from EU Delegations. Established in 1992, it spent around €900m in 2009 on humanitarian aid through its network of 200 partners like the Red Cross, relief NGOs and UN agencies.

	comment
Contribution to UK development objectives	Strong
	+	ECHO’s work delivering and continually improving humanitarian aid is highly relevant and congruent with DFID’s priorities in terms of the Millennium Development Goals.
	+	ECHO is crucial in disbursing EU funds quickly in emergency situations.
	+	Field presence across the world (EU is the second largest donor), composed of highly respected technical experts.
	+	Strong mandate and policy framework for dealing with fragile and conflict sensitive situations.
	_	Committed to gender equality but little evidence of a uniform approach across countries.
Organisational strengths	Satisfactory
	+	Programming, peer reviews, planning, procurement, independent implementation monitoring and evaluation are standard across the EC and allow the EC to make efficiency savings. Special conditions for ECHO ensure quick delivery.
	+	ECHO works hard to improve coordination between donors and partners on the ground. Relations between ECHO and its partners governed by Framework Partnership Agreements, which define roles and responsibilities for both parties.
	+	Clearly articulated mandate, annual strategy and reporting system on outcome/impact in place and transparent HR policies, based on merit.
	_	Evaluations insufficiently followed up.
	+	Funding allocations validated by transparent Global Needs Assessments. New tools for more disaggregated needs based resource allocation under development in some sectors.
	+	Full disclosure policy based on justifiable list of exemptions.
	_	There are rules in place to ensure publication of documentation, though implementation appears inconsistent between countries.
Capacity for positive change	Likely
	+	The Commission has a track-record of capacity for change.
	+	ECHO and EU civil protection have recently been put under a single Commissioner. This may improve coherence
	_	The impact of the EAS and Lisbon Treaty on day-to-day management of ECHO and how ECHO operations will interact with DG Development and the EAS is as yet unclear