Last week held a crucial moment for NEAR’s efforts to achieve the localisation agenda: The Grand Bargain Annual Meeting held in Geneva. The meeting was a significant success, for NEAR, our members, and the Global South constituency that NEAR represents in the Grand Bargain.
NEAR co-chaired the meeting; this marks the first time that a Global South signatory to the Grand Bargain has been given access to participate in the Facilitation Group (the “board” of the Grand Bargain). During the last year NEAR has had significant opportunities to shape the vision, direction, and strategic priorities of the Grand Bargain. NEAR’s achievements and contributions were recognised and applauded during the meeting.
Jan Egeland, The Eminent Person of the Grand Bargain, noted that it was an oversight that in previous years Global South signatories were not granted a seat in the Facilitation Group, recognising the essential perspective NEAR has brought to this space.
Another topic of great importance was the discussion on National Reference Groups (NRGs). Iyad Agha, representing the North West Syria NGO Forum, spoke on behalf of the NRG he has helped establish in North West Syria. Building on a Grand Bargain country-based dialogue, this NRG will continue to be a space for local, national, international actors and donors to work together to find a common understanding and action plan to achieve the localisation agenda in North West Syria. This NRG will seek to ensure all local and national actors can access quality funding, including multi-year and flexible funding. It will also serve as a space where the Grand Bargain commitments can be discussed at national level. NEAR trusts that this kind of country-based dialogue will facilitate creative solutions to humanitarian problems, using the convening power of the Grand Bargain.
The U.S. State Department’s Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) expressed their support for NRGs as a global initiative. PRM finds the NRGs initiative to be consistent with its efforts to support localisation and Accountability to Affected Populations. They have briefed their front-line staff on the NRGs and are interested in further exploring how they can support the NRGs. This welcome news as nascent NRGs around the world are working to launch.
Both the Role of Intermediaries caucus and Quality Funding caucus have been working diligently over the last six months. The Quality Funding caucus has made great progress on multiyear and flexible funding, while the Intermediaries caucus has focused on cementing role of intermediaries in humanitarian actions and ensuring local and national actors are receiving the support they require. NEAR is represented in the funding caucus by our Leadership Council chair Sema Gemel, and in the intermediaries caucus by Manu Gupta, both supported by a member of the Near secretariat. As both caucuses are expected to close in the coming weeks, NEAR’s participation in both was appreciated and noted.
One of the brightest moments last week was the launch of a caucus on Funding for Localisation, to be co-convened by NEAR and the office of the Eminent Person, Jan Egeland. Caucus members will include USAID, Denmark, UNHCR, OCHA, IFRC, Save the Children, A4EP, and the North West Syria NGO Forum. Together, this group will launch a high-level political dialogue that aims to achieve the long-held objective of delivering 25% of funding as directly as possible to local and national actors. It will also broker a political agreement on providing overheads for local and national actors as well as institutional capacity strengthening. NEAR is thrilled to be at the helm of this caucus, which stands to deliver on long promised and, frankly, overdue promises made at the World Humanitarian Summit.
In this moment of celebration and reflection, NEAR is deeply grateful for our members and the Global South constituency. We would not have made such great progress without your participation, contributions and feedback. We believe these conversations at global level have the potential to make significant and tangible changes to the work all our members are striving to accomplish.
Stay tuned and watch this space for updates as this work moves forward.