Humanitarian Assistance - Reflection Paper

This reflection paper discusses the fundamental principles that govern humanitarian assistance, the global architecture of humanitarian assistance, and the roles and responsibilities of both governmental and non-governmental agencies that are the relevant actors in humanitarian assistance.

Running head: HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE 1
Humanitarian Assistance
Name
Institution

HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE 2
Humanitarian Assistance
Reflection Paper
Humanitarian assistance can be described as material or logistical aid provided in
response to crises, both natural and human-made. Over the course of this unit, I was able to learn
that the primary intention of humanitarian assistance is to save the lives of the victims of
different calamities and alleviate suffering. Additionally, it enhances the preparedness towards
the possibility of an occurrence of a catastrophe and attempts to prevent it from occurring
(Weiss, 2018). This preparedness helps the agency in maintaining human dignity. Some of the
fundamental principles that govern humanitarian assistance are independence, impartiality,
neutrality, and humanity. I further understood that we must not understate the universal
significance of humanitarian aid in the modern day world. We should, therefore, understand the
global architecture that surrounds humanitarian assistance.
As ascertained by Moroney, Pezard, Miller, Engstrom & Doll (2013), some of the
fundamental concepts that relate to the global architecture of humanitarian assistance include
international relief systems, the principles that govern the international humanitarian law, and the
roles and responsibilities of both governmental and non-governmental agencies that are the
relevant actors in humanitarian assistance.
I believe that a health practitioner working in a humanitarian agency must exercise
neutrality at all times. They must never take sides on matters of religious, political or racial
nature to ensure that they earn the confidence of the public. Additionally, as a health practitioner,
I must be impartial and offer my services with total impartiality (Hunt, Schwartz, Sinding & Elit,
2014). I understand that I must not discriminate the victims based on race, political affiliation,

HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE 3
religion, or social class. Furthermore, the humanitarian agencies all over the world must exercise
independence in their operations without the interference of any other bodies or individuals that
may have different interests. The assistance offered must thus be free of any pressures from any
external bodies (Hunt et al., 2014). Finally, humanity is essential in humanitarian aid because it
helps in alleviating suffering as soon as possible.
I believe that if both the local and international actors can appropriately coordinate, then
success can be almost guaranteed in humanitarian assistance. The importance of the coordination
must not be understated as it guarantees success and ensures efficient and cost-effective
operations. In my understanding, I am tempted to believe that the local actors are the most
important actors during operations related to humanitarian assistance. This group of actors is in
most cases readily available since they live in the local communities. According to (Luis,
Dolinskaya & Smilowitz (2012), they are the first people to respond to any crisis. Luis et al.
(2012) further ascertain that the local actors are customarily placed uniquely immediate, and
appropriate need-based assistance is offered to the victims. I have a strong belief that these local
actors can significantly impact on my future practice as a health practitioner. My belief is based
on the fact that these people have excellent access and personal connections with the victims of
several crises and disasters (Merchant, Leigh & Lurie, 2010).
The Australian government is guided by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
(DFAT) in responding to international humanitarian crises. Additionally, there is the Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) that is tasked with managing responses to
emergencies. I was able to learn that since 2005, disasters have been occurring n=more
frequently with increased impacts. The Australian government has however been able to build
the capacity of the civil society in cooperation with the national government in responding to

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disasters. She additionally helps other nations in managing their crises and disasters. The
preparedness and swift response to emergencies are also enhanced by the cooperation between
the Australian government and other experienced international agencies.
Depending on a personal reflection of this unit, I can conclude that crises and disasters
have several negative impacts on populations. These disasters cause poverty and reduce the
quality of life. Several bodies work in coordination to offer relief operations during disasters.
Some of these bodies include OCHA, DFAT, the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and UNICEF among others (Palandri, 2012).
International humanitarian systems are however faced with numerous challenges that hinder
successful humanitarian assistance missions (Weiss, 2018). The different bodies and agencies,
however, work together to save lives, alleviate suffering, and restore the human dignity during
and after humanitarian crises or other disasters (Palandri, 2012). As a future health practitioner, I
believe that using the information and knowledge gained from this unit; I can perform effectively
in coordination with humanitarian assistance actors to help the victims of humanitarian crises.

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References
Hunt, M. R., Schwartz, L., Sinding, C., & Elit, L. (2014). The ethics of engaged presence: a
framework for health professionals in humanitarian assistance and development
work. Developing world bioethics, 14(1), 47-55. Retrieved from:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/dewb.12013
Luis, E., Dolinskaya, I. S., & Smilowitz, K. R. (2012). Disaster relief routing: Integrating
research and practice. Socio-economic planning sciences, 46(1), 88-97. Retrieved from:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038012111000310
Merchant, R. M., Leigh, J. E., & Lurie, N. (2010). Health care volunteers and disaster response
—first, be prepared. New England Journal of Medicine, 362(10), 872-873. Retrieved
from: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1001737
Moroney, J. D., Pezard, S., Miller, L. E., Engstrom, J., & Doll, A. (2013). Lessons from
Department of Defense disaster relief efforts in the Asia-Pacific region. Rand
Corporation. Retrieved from: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA582168
Palandri, I. (2012). Funding Arrangements for Disaster Response. In International Disaster
Response Law (pp. 627-649). TMC Asser Press, The Hague, The Netherlands. Retrieved
from: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-90-6704-882-8_26
Weiss, T. G. (2018). Humanitarian challenges and intervention. Routledge. Retrieved from:
https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9780429963735