2.3 Scaling up and localization for WASH learning systems
A strengthened and ACCESSIBLE training offer for all
Bridging the gap between academic partners, learning institutions and the humanitarian sector at a more local level is an essential step in the localization of humanitarian aid. Providing an adapted and flexible educational (graduated and vocational) offer, closer to humanitarian crises, will contribute to the professionalization of the sector.
The sector has identified the needs to:
The sector has identified the needs to:
- Empower local learning institutions/organizations in emergency prone areas to deliver appropriate and targeted humanitarian WASH learning activities.
- Ensure that WASH professionals (including future staff) have access to a range of appropriate, timely and contextualized humanitarian WASH learning offers.
- Guarantee that the humanitarian and academic/training sectors have a portfolio of essential humanitarian WASH learning opportunities delivered worldwide in key languages and adapted to the WASH contexts in the region;
- Establish a system to deliver timely, specific, and certified humanitarian WASH learning opportunities for emergent crisis and/or in emergency prone areas
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As such, this initiative co-leads, participants and contributors are working together through the co-development of higher-level educational materials that can be scaled up and localized with and by, key academic partners, primarily in the Global South. As a starting point, 4 online courses have been co-developed to create a Graduate Professional Diploma Program at IHE-Delft, where all developed educational materials will be made available for use and adaptation by partners.
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The four courses are ''Governance in humanitarian contexts'', ''Public and Environmental Health in Emergencies'', ''Water and Sanitation in Urban Contexts'', ''Building Resilient Systems in Fragile Contexts''. Each course consists of 140 study load hours (knowledge clips, webinars, readings, quizzes, group- and individual assignments etc.), spread over sixteen weeks, so that it is possible to follow them alongside professional work. More information here: https://www.un-ihe.org/graduate-professional-diploma-programme-humanitarian-wash
The next step is now to diversify and systematically scale-up the offer of IHE-Delft’s educational programs, based on a robust educational offer that guarantees quality. To start with, the initiative will offer the courses at four academic organizations in different regions of the world (Latin America, West and Central Africa, East and Southern Africa and the Middle East) in Spanish, French, English and Arabic, followed by streamlining these learning pathways at other relevant universities. This requires not only the transfer of these courses, but also their adaptation to the local context and their translation in order to make them accessible to the widest possible audience.
In addition, those collaborations have the vision to develop a more systematic generation of evidence at the local level through operational research as a key element of the response quality and to support the creation of global and local knowledge and learning for the sector.
This initiative is a first step in identifying and demonstrating how strategic partnerships between academics from all around the world and the sector, with support from the global level, can develop the capacity of the sector and enable more local responses. It also raises awareness of the opportunity to create an alliance of academic partners supporting the capacity building effort of the humanitarian sector and to demonstrate the capacity of the academic sector to collaborate with the humanitarian sector in a more systematic and robust way.
The next step is now to diversify and systematically scale-up the offer of IHE-Delft’s educational programs, based on a robust educational offer that guarantees quality. To start with, the initiative will offer the courses at four academic organizations in different regions of the world (Latin America, West and Central Africa, East and Southern Africa and the Middle East) in Spanish, French, English and Arabic, followed by streamlining these learning pathways at other relevant universities. This requires not only the transfer of these courses, but also their adaptation to the local context and their translation in order to make them accessible to the widest possible audience.
In addition, those collaborations have the vision to develop a more systematic generation of evidence at the local level through operational research as a key element of the response quality and to support the creation of global and local knowledge and learning for the sector.
This initiative is a first step in identifying and demonstrating how strategic partnerships between academics from all around the world and the sector, with support from the global level, can develop the capacity of the sector and enable more local responses. It also raises awareness of the opportunity to create an alliance of academic partners supporting the capacity building effort of the humanitarian sector and to demonstrate the capacity of the academic sector to collaborate with the humanitarian sector in a more systematic and robust way.
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LED BY:
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PARTICIPANTS:
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Global WASH Cluster, Action Against Hunger, Bioforce, German WASH Network, International Committee of the Red Cross, International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Oxfam, Polish Action Humanitarian, Rehister of engineers for Disaster Refief, Save The Children, Solidarités International and UN International Children Emergency Fund
CONTRIBUTORS: German WASH Network, International Medical Corps, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UN High Commissionner for Refugees |
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