Mapping Impacts of Foreign Aid: Spatial Methods for Measuring Humanitarian Performance in Haiti
Open AccessThe earthquake that rocked Haiti in January 2010 spurred an outpouring of support from the global community, both in financial terms and in humanitarian response. In the aftermath of the earthquake, calls for transparency, accountability and coordination have pushed the humanitarian community to account for its actions. Using data from Haiti Aid Map, an initiative that provides project-level data on international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in Haiti, this project investigates whether indicators of humanitarian need explain NGO project locations in Haiti through a spatial methodology for measuring humanitarian performance. The humanitarian sector lacks comprehensive standards of humanitarian performance to measure whether actors are meeting needs of beneficiaries. Methodologies for measuring humanitarian need and foreign aid are based either on indicators of poverty or short-term relief demands, resulting in fragmented reporting and analysis. Measures of humanitarian need should include a broad composite of indicators that span the relief to development continuum. This analysis maps humanitarian actors and the relationships between them, compares different measures of aid presence and humanitarian need, and offers a methodology that uses available spatial data to determine whether aid follows need. This methodology highlights how access to improved spatial data, as advocated by the aid effectiveness sector, will facilitate better analysis of humanitarian performance and has the potential to improve humanitarian coordination and aid targeting.
- All rights reserved
Notice to Authors
If you are the author of this work and you have any questions about the information on this page, please use the Contact form to get in touch with us.