Rapid Emergency Response Framework

Save the Children defines an emergency as a situation where the lives, physical and mental well being or development opportunities of children are threatened as a result of conflict or natural disaster, and where local capacity to respond is inadequate or has exceeded.

In any major emergency we aspire to be one of the top 3 NGO responders, in terms of numbers of people reached, funds raised and media profile.

NOTE: This framework is intended predominantly for use in rapid-onset emergencies, such as cyclones, floods, tsunamis and earthquakes, as opposed to slower-onset emergencies such as drought.

Early Warning and Alerts

A designated emergency focal point in each state office is responsible for tracking early warning indicators in the state, in collaboration with local partners, the state inter-agency group and government departments, and sharing alerts with the State Programme Manager and the national Emergency Manager. The Emergency Manager is responsible for tracking warning indicators and issuing alerts for emergencies in states where Save the Children does not have an office.

Rapid Assessments

In general, a rapid assessment should be launched within 48 hours of a rapid-onset emergency.

The decision to launch a rapid assessment can be made by the CEO, Director of Programmes or the Emergency Manager. In addition, any State Programme Manager can launch a rapid assessment within their state. Funding should not be a constraint in conducting rapid assessments – if appropriate grant funds are unavailable, unrestricted funds will be used to cover costs.

Emergency Response

The following matrix is intended to help categorise rapid-onset emergencies in order to determine an appropriate response from Save the Children. It is not intended for use with slow-onset emergencies, where wider organisational and other considerations may come into play.

Ranking the severity of the emergency-

LEVEL 5 - 1,000,000 children in need of relief. 
LEVEL 4 - 500,000 children in need of relief.
LEVEL 3 - 100,000 children in need of relief. 
LEVEL 2 - 10,000-99,000 children in need of relief. 
LEVEL 1 - 10,000 children in need of relief.

Our Work during and After Aila:

In the post-AILA CYCLONE (May 25, 2009 – to January 2011) humanitarian and recovery efforts Save the Children implemented a huge relief intervention in the first six months. From February 2010, Save the Children implemented Aila Recovery Intervention with the support of ECHO (European Commission Humanitarian Aid Organisation) and has brought enormous difference in the lives of children and the affected families. Here are a few highlights: 

·        Reached 15,660 people – 6,622 children directly and the indirect beneficiaries are 51,768

·        Child Friendly Spaces and Food provision to children

·        Livelihood to the very poor and prevention of distress of migration

·        350,000 mangrove plantation and campaign for planting more mangroves to save sunderbans

·      Save the Children is currently implementing a  DipECHO supported Disaster Preparedness programme in the Aila affected areas in the Sunderbans.

Here are a few reports and learnings from our work in the aftermath of Aila.

Aila Lessons learnt: Workshop Report