Joint Programme Evaluation final evaluation report august 2016 DanChurchAid (dca) Jhamsikhel, Lalitpur Nepal Dr. Prakash Bhattarai and Dr. Dhruba Gautam

2.3.4 Humanitarian Response

The evaluation team has analysed the efficiency of DCA’s humanitarian response programme regarding its timeliness, use of human resource, project approaches and strategies, monitoring system, utilisation of budget and resource leveraging, and appropriateness of partner NGOs.
Timeliness: HR programme seems efficient in terms of the effective deliberation of relief packages to the needy community immediately after the crisis taken place in various locations of programme countries. However, in some cases (for instance in Nepal during earthquake response), due to the absence of DCA’s own warehouse and basic stockpiling, it was not possible to response work immediately after disaster. The evaluation team found that often the response activities of DCA are based on the findings of ‘joint needs assessments’ led by the respective governments in programme countries. Likewise, Joint Need Assessment (JNA) through mobile phone based apps AKVO helped in collecting the relevant data. As a result, there was no duplication of resources because the project shared the list of beneficiaries to be responded to all agencies who are willing to join hands with DCA in the course of the relief distribution. The programme achieved strong outcomes (during the time of earthquake response in Nepal) because it adopted tried-and-tested approach to shelter support and improved WASH facilities, thereby saving time and resources and reducing the risk of failure.
Use of human resource: Despite the limited number of human resource available at DCA, the evaluation team found the existing team quite efficient and work with an excellent team spirit to execute the huge amount of work scattered over a large geographical area. However, since the programme covered a large array of activities, the staffs had to rush to complete the plan. DCA had filled the capacity building gaps by provisioning deployments and secondments from regional and headquarters during the initial period of the response work.
Project approaches and strategies: Efficiency of humanitarian response programme is also viewed from the project approaches and strategies, and the evaluation team found that the programme’s approaches and processes are continuously modified to ensure the quality of intervention and addressing the beneficiaries’ needs. For example, during the earthquake response in Nepal in 2015, DCA has changed its approch from ‘blanket’ to ‘targeted,’ from ‘large coverage’ to ‘small and confined,’ and from ‘emergency response’ to ‘early recovery and rehabilitation.’ However, in Lalitpur district of Nepal, there was some disastifaction of earthquake affected families about ‘target’ approach’ that is being implemnting in recovery phase.
Monitoring system: HR programme of DCA has developed an innovative, well-structured planning and log-frame-based monitoring tools and PDM which are easy to understand and utilise. Except DERF supported projects in India, DCA has placed its own staff/Project Coordinator in the partners’ office and helped closely to their field team in planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of projects. DCA sends its field visit monitoring report to partners to review and endorse before finalising them. This gives an opportunity to understand and internalize the response related issues.
Utilisation of budget and resource leveraging: The budget disbursement to partner NGOs was on time. Despite of some externalities like political strike, blockage, the budget utilisation seems satisfactory. DCA was successful in leveraging additional funding from ECHO under HIP (2015) and addressed the shelter needs by providing cash, shelter materials and technical assistance, allowing affected households to build back better and increase their resilience to future disasters. DCA had adopted a short process of procurement through a competitive tendering in its logistics management policy.
Appropriateness of partner NGOs: DCA has selected experienced district based NGOs for implementing its humanitarian response programme, which greatly assisted to coordinate and collaborate with governmental and non-governmental agencies for quick and quality humanitarian response. As DCA programmes used the existing institutional set up (local government) for efficient response work, which not only saved time and resources, but also strengthened coordination with local government and ownership.
Despite some internal challenges such as turnover of trained staffs, limited experiences of partner NGOs in humanitarian response (but well experienced in development field), and pressure to meet international standards during humanitarian response that DCA had to face during emergency response, the overall rating of emergency response was excellent. External challenges like lack of clarity on government policies, limited trust of government towards INGOs, delays in custom clearance, Indian blockade, the absence of elected local government, turnover of government officials and shallow coordination among the government agencies had also impacted quality post-earthquake response.

2.4 Impact

2.4.1 Migrant Rights Programme

A number of impacts can be observed as result of consistent rights-based advocacy at the national and regional level on migrant workers’ issues. Some of these are listed as policy and grassroots level impacts;
At the policy level

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  DCA partners have played an instrumental role to the drafting and adoption of SAARC Plan of Action for Cooperation on Matters Relating to Migration. During the 18^th SAARC Summit held in Kathmandu in November 2014, South Asian Heads of State committed to collaborating on migration, as reflected in a Declaration containing article 21 on labour migration and article 19 on prevention of trafficking. Nepal subsequently drafted a Plan of Action for implementing these commitments, which was discussed at SAARC meeting in Kathmandu on 3-4 May, 2016, in preparation for its adoption at the 19^th SAARC Summit in Islamabad in November 2016. On May 4^th, SAARC delegates formed a Technical Committee and agreed on the Plan of Action for Cooperation on Matters Relating to Migration, following weeks of intensive advocacy from DCA partners through both MFA and the National Network for Safe Migration (NNSM). Once officially adopted, this mechanism will provide an important additional framework through which migrants’ rights groups can advocate for the improvement of national and regional policies on the protection of migrant workers.
  

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  Due to consolidated and sustained advocacy efforts from DCA partners in Bangladesh, government has adopted the Overseas Employment Act 2013, which is now in the process of amendment for making it more worker friendly than before. Likewise, DCA partners in Bangladesh have also established Bangladesh Migrant Rights Forum in 2014 with the participation of 60 NGOs. This forum has been working as pressure group in Bangladesh to advocate the rights of migrant workers. This forum is taking lead role of celebrate international migrant day on December 18 along with government agencies. This day is considered as big day in Bangladesh and celebrated all over country. Moreover, there is also an ongoing advocacy efforts focusing on the voting rights of migrant workers. In this regard, DCA partners have submitted memorandum to the government.
  

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  As result of sustained advocacy effort on migrant workers’ issues, ORB Development Foundation has obtained an ECOSOC status at the UN in 2016. ORB Development Foundation is also convening civil society forum in the upcoming GFMD to be held in Bangladesh.
  

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  In Cambodia, two new sets of Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) for labour migration were signed by the Cambodian government with Thailand and Malaysia, respectively. This has been made possible due to the strategic engagement by partners with the respective governments, in which they were able to provide significant inputs into the policy making process.
  

At the grassroots level

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  According to view from respondents, migrant rights advocacy and awareness raising programme implemented by DCA partners, both in Nepal and Bangladesh, has contributed to change the negative perception of government employees and community people towards migrant workers. This has contributed create an enabling environment for migrant workers and members of their families to live a dignified and discrimination free life in the society. However, community’s perception towards female migrant workers is still not very satisfactory.
  

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  DCA partners have been instrumental for awareness rising about safe migration at grassroots level through pre-departure training, court yard meeting and media mobilisation. According to view from beneficiaries and stakeholders interviewed in Nepal and Bangladesh, migrant workers who went abroad with pre-departure orientation through MIC did not face any job related problem in the country of destination as compared to those who gone abroad without attending pre-departure orientation; many of them are able to receive better salary and choose better companies. Likewise, migrant workers are able to speak against fraud cases and exploitation, and decline job offers that are not authentic.
  

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  Other activities included legal aid to address various rights violations suffered during their migration. Partners used various means of extending legal aid – either through diplomatic missions and civil society members in destination countries (including charitable organisations, individuals, and pro bono lawyers), and/or through providing access to legal and extrajudicial compensation mechanisms in the country of origin after return.
  

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  Successful operation of region-wide Migrant Rights Violation Reporting System (MRVRS) with a number of cases (176 cases as of 2015 data). This system have been used for rights-based advocacy on a continuous basis – including for issues such as helping stranded migrants, improving consular services, calls for the abolishment of the Kafala system in the Gulf states, standard contracts, and reference wages.
  

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  DCA partner Tenaganita in Malaysia, who, through its own dedicated staff and their innovative training programme for young lawyers (through which they trained 143 lawyers in 2015) managed to extend legal assistance to 4,126 migrant workers and refugees, securing an amount of MYR 326,087.48 (DKK 531,583) in compensation, settlement and refunds of recruitment and other fees throughout the year. Tenaganita also provides shelter support to trafficking survivors, most of them exploited domestic workers in whose rescue the organisation involved law enforcement, and subsequently provides them shelter, psychosocial care, and/or further referrals to health professionals. In some cases, assistance is provided for voluntary repatriation.
  

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  NDWM used India’s progressive social protection legislation at central and state level to ensure its coverage for migrant and domestic workers, enrolling an additional 8,461 women in various welfare schemes, including state-level Social Welfare Boards and the RashtriyaSwasthyaBimaYojana (RSBY) health insurance for families below the poverty line. In addition, 731 rights holders received specific benefits such as pensions, widows’ support, scholarships, access to hostels, and medical treatment, through the intervention of the partner.