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United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Civil Military Coordination Courses
Duration: 5 days

COE facilitates the Civil Military Coordination (UN-CMCoord) course conducted by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) up to twice a year in the Asia-Pacific Region.

Introduction

Coordination is a widely used and abused term; therefore it is essential to be clear about the focus of the OCHA CMCS on United Nations Civil-Military Coordination (UN-CMCoord) and the training that supports this effort.

The UN-CMCoord is designed to address the need for coordination between international civilian humanitarian actors, especially UN humanitarian agencies and international military forces in an international humanitarian emergency. Training plays a critical role in building capacity to facilitate effective coordination in the field.

UN CMCoord – A Shared Responsibility

The goal of the UN humanitarian agencies is to assist the victims of an emergency, and the mission of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is to assist in the coordination of this effort.
Coordination must guarantee "humanitarian space" without jeopardizing the perceived neutrality and impartiality of UN humanitarian agencies. Any loss of neutrality or impartiality would increase the already significant security risk for relief workers and hinder future access to victims. As a result, our approach to civil military coordination relies heavily on information sharing,  careful division of tasks, and when feasible, collaborative planning. Military forces are often reluctant to include civilians in the planning process during the initial phases of conflict situations, and the opportunity for planning is very limited in sudden onset natural and technological emergencies. Our approach supports a coexistence relationship with international militaries in most complex emergencies, and a cooperative relationship between international civilian and military responders in natural and technological emergencies.

TRAINING – Response to Needs

UN-CMCoord training is based on the needs in the field, and differs from most national training programs in terms of content and method. There is no global disaster response plan, and no established planning system. Every major international effort is ad hoc and dependent on the resources available at the time.

The most pressing requirements are a clear understanding of the need in the stricken area and a rapid inventory of who is responding with what capability. The vast majority of the international responses are bilateral, and not visible in the UN system. Therefore, training focuses on information sharing and understanding the roles of military and civilian actors that respond to the needs of a stricken population.

A network of trained individuals allows us to share information in real time and  educate the responding organizations about their proper roles in the emergency.

Participation – Diversity is Strengths

The training differs not only in what is presented, but also in how it is presented. The participants are the primary resources, sharing their expertise and presenting their organization’s capabilities within a framework facilitated by the course management team. "Hands-on" training with collaborative information sharing tools used in the field, and a collegial environment helps draw participants into a sustainable network of trained personnel that can be called upon in an emergency.

The training sessions must reflect the diversity in the field. The mix of participants is critical to the success of the training and the development of an effective network.  Sending and receiving states, governmental and non-governmental organizations, aid agencies and civil protection units, military and civil defense organizations, United Nations agencies and other intergovernmental bodies, as well as the Red Cross Movement, are invited.

Our ability to recruit a wide range of participants is due in large part to the generosity of sponsors that enable participants to attend free of charge, as well as a growing recognition of the operational value of the training and the network.

We believe that sharing the responsibility of training with the participants, and actively engaging them in the UN-CMCoord network reinforces one of the fundamental principles of coordination:

For more information about Pandemic Influenza events or any other COE event, contact the Education and Training Department at education@coe-dmha.org or call: 808-433-1427.

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