Humanitarian Imperative! By Gbenro Olajuyigbe Head, Human Security, ActionAid Nigeria (A paper presented at MusaYar’adua Centre, Abuja at a Programme on Sustainable Humanitarian Response Mechanism for Nigeria, organized by MurtalaMuhammed Foundation on December 2, 2014). The current challenges of humanitarian crises in Nigeria have thrown up new images of leadership, technical, capacity, policy deficiencies. The need to reconstruct effective and appropriate proactive response mechanism is imperative

1. Humanitarian Imperative! By Gbenro Olajuyigbe Head, Human Security,
ActionAid Nigeria
(A paper presented at Musa Yar’adua Centre, Abuja at a Programme on Sustainable
Humanitarian Response Mechanism for Nigeria, organized by Murtala Muhammed
Foundation on December 2, 2014).
The mostexplosive part of human experiences todayis horrendous humanitarian crises;
tearing families apart, paralysing livelihood, causing ghastly death, inducing
monumental human suffering, decimating humanity and challenging our collective duty
to defend rights and protectpeople.
Nature- induced- and human –made- emergencies continue to precipitate humanitarian
crises across the globe with dire consequences to the affected persons, communities
and states. Disaster and humanitarian emergencies are becoming more frequent and
unpredictable in most cases. No time in history has the imperativeness of humanitarian
intervention becomes more compelling than now when the risk exposure of persons,
especially the vulnerable people tend to have multiplied in several folds. The
imperativeness of saving lives and reducing human suffering wherever there is
humanitarian challenge is central to the cause ofhumanity.
Hence,the rights of people to receive humanitarian assistance and support,the right and
duty to offer these are the core elements of Humanitarian Imperative. Humanitarian
imperative means that response to human tragedies and suffering in increasingly
interconnected world is not negotiable. It is a duty! It is moral! It is the law. A duty
because State(s) have responsibility to defend, protectand attend to security, safety and
welfare of all living within their borders.Moral,because response to human suffering and
concerns of others, especially those in distress is the chore that defines humanity and
projects its humaneness. Law, because, the combination of International humanitarian
law, Refugee Law, Law of Armed Conflict, Universal Human rights and even aspects of
municipal laws are made, among other things, to respond to the specific rights ofat- risk-
population. These various laws impose duty on both State and Non-State Actors. They
also impose sanction for failure to act and uphold humanitarian law, especially in the
contexts of human- induced emergencies such as in armed conflict.
At all times , anywhere it happens, disaster must not be allowed to take away the rights
of those that are affected by it. It must notbe allowed to reduce them to sub-human. The
sanctity of dignity of affected persons or population must be protected, their rights to

2. receive appropriate assistance, support and reliefs that aid their recovery must be
respected, ensured and provided. Response to human suffering by state is not act of
charity; It is a duty !
People, the cardinal feature of state, are not object of charity, they are subject of rights!
The key to revolutionary response to human suffering and humanitarian crises is to
accept it as a duty; forecast it, plan for it, timely and speedily mobilise and deploy
resources to reduce risks and alleviate human suffering.
Humanitarian Duty and Responsibility; Observation About Nigeria
Nigeria is yet to appreciate the fact thatresponse to human suffering within her borders
is the classic evidence of stateliness and good governance, the meta indicator of her
capacity to protect and support her peoples. Hence, little attention is often paid to this
onerous duty.
Even though timely and unimpeded access to affected population are crucial to survival
and remediation ,response to humanitarian crises and challenges in Nigeria has been
slow, ad-hoc, inadequate and ineffective. Observation over the years has shown that
there is no adequate mechanism to respond effectively to humanitarian challenges ( Ask
those that were affected by 2012 Flood disaster; interrogate the conditions of over one
million people that are currently internally displaced by terror attack; engage the fate of
tens of thousands taking refuge outside Nigeria; listen to ‘victims’ that are privately
nursing their wounds).
Gross inadequate capacity of the statutory Response Agencies at Federal and State
levels to conceptualize humanitarian work, lack of skill in rapid assessment, inability to
provide political, strategic and operational leadership that can drive the Humanitarian
Space. Capacity to manage emergency response from Relief to Recovery Stage is
inadequate. Coordination to ensure harmonization of response by stakeholders and
players is insufficient. Funding and accountability are of grave concern. Setting up ad-
hoc committees such Dangote’s led Committee on Flood in 2012 and Danjuma led
Victims Appeal Fund in 2014 with a mandate not very different from that of existing
statutory agencies is of serious concern.While the idea of raising fund is good,operation
should be integrated within existing structure and with clear accountability framework in
place.
Repositioning Humanitarian Response in Nigeria

3. The currentchallenges ofhumanitarian crises in Nigeria have thrown up new images of
leadership, technical, capacity, policy deficiencies. The need to reconstructeffective and
appropriate proactive response mechanism is imperative. People are living with more
risks than ever. The threat to the poor, communities, especially in the face of fierce
terror attacks is expanding the space of vulnerability, reinforcing poverty and crippling
potential for recovery and development. Government must own the responsibility for
humanitarian intervention even if it is at international scale. It must take lead, coordinate
and fund it within accountability framework that promote transparency. Nigeria must
develop systems to collect early information about impending hazards, take quick
decision aboutresponding and enhance response capacity.
To assert the rights of the ever increasing population of the vulnerable persons, it is
apposite to embrace good practise and situate humanitarian intervention within the
contexts of having effective maximum impact. Nigeria can benefit from the global
humanitarian reform process which was prompted by significant changes in
humanitarian operations. The change aims to build stronger humanitarian response
system, with greater-predictability: in financing and leadership , accountability to the
affected populations and partnership between humanitarian actors. There is need for
Nigeria to focus herreform of the Humanitarian Space and Agencies on four inter-related
areas:
 Humanitarian Leadership: Ensuring effective leadership.
 Humanitarian Financing: adequate, timely and flexible financing;
 Humanitarian Coordination: adequate and predictable capacity through the
cluster/sectorial approach, and
 Strong Humanitarian Partnerships.
Element of the reform should include establishment of a body that could replicate the
Global Humanitarian Platform established in July 2006 to strengthen coordination. The
essentiality of partnership in humanitarian intervention is not negotiable. The five
principles of Partnership that enhance effectiveness, acknowledge diversity and nurture
partnership must be enshrined in the platform’s operational guideline. The principle
include; equality, transparency, results-oriented approach, responsibility and
complementarity.
The reform, if diligently carried out with focus on humanitarian imperative will ensure
accountability to all, especially the affected population. It will also address the imprecise
role and clarity between Emergency Agencies and Ad-hoc Bodies that have
jeopardized operation and effective humanitarian action in the past.. The technical
advantage of the reform is that humanitarian community will be able to reach more

4. affected people, with more comprehensive needs-based relief, protection and security,
in a more effective and timely manner.
With the Federal Response Agency, NEMA serving as Central Coordinating Body and
contributions and support from all the stakeholders on the platform, the Nigeria’s
humanitarian space will begin to ensure standard and quality, promote accountability,
appreciate predictability and timeliness as hallmark ofeffective humanitarian action.
In conclusion, we must appreciate that the major cause of humanitarian challenges we
have in Nigeria, especially the human- made ones mainly resulted from the increasing
closure of spaces for rights, outright denial of rights; social, political and economic
rights. Our strategy to reduce humanitarian crises must project respect for people’s
rights and promote equal opportunity.
In managing humanitarian challenges thatmay still occur, we mustpromote the dignity of
the human person, even in the face ofemergencies. Itis imperative for us to intervene at
all times and everywhere to reduce human suffering and enhance capacity for recovery.
Humanitarian imperative feeds on the rights of those affected by disaster to receive
assistance and the duty of state to provide such. It grows on morals and rights of
humanitarian actors and community to stretch forth supporting hands while the sinking
population could still be rescued and saved. It is the loudest reminder of our common
humanity, the ring on which even states surrender their sovereignty!