Nexus

Today, protracted crises are recurrent: two-thirds of humanitarian aid is allocated to long-term crises, which last an average of 7 years. One of the main challenges faced by humanitarian aid actors in protracted crises is that humanitarian action alone cannot meet all the needs of populations. In the absence of sufficient development efforts in these fragile contexts, humanitarians are often forced to go beyond their initial expertise to fill gaps.

The Nexus is also part of a wider debate on reforming the United Nations. The World Humanitarian Summit in 2016 urged us to transcend the divide between humanitarian and development work, and to integrate peace actors. This New Way Of Working thus advocates a vision where humanitarian, development and peace actors work together towards collective results, on the basis of their comparative advantages and according to the specificity of the context. In addition, this nexus approach must include the participation of civil society and local stakeholders in all phases of the project cycle, from design to implementation and monitoring. Working with local players who are present before, during and after the crisis increases the likelihood that both short- and long-term objectives will be achieved.

Since 2016, Burkina Faso has been facing a security and humanitarian crisis with over 2 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) to date. This further increases the livelihood and resilience needs of host populations and IDPs. With a view to offering better living conditions to vulnerable rural populations and promoting peaceful management of shared natural resources, Solidar Suisse integrates humanitarian aid, rural development and peace initiatives into its interventions.