In Ukraine, a key component of NORCAP’s work is collaborating with local partners and making sure they are at the centre of the response. National government, local authorities and civil society organisations are all important if you want to do localisation properly, say our localisation experts in Kyiv.
Local partners, lasting impact: Lessons from Ukraine
The trio consists of Teri Smith, Stephen Catling and Nataliia Madzigon – who are all on assignment with UNHCR in Kyiv. Their work focuses especially on housing and social services, making sure those who are the most vulnerable get access to the social services they need and that they are, as far as possible, housed in durable and sustainable accommodation.
Approximately 2 million households have had their houses damaged or destroyed, with more than 85,000 people living in collective sites. Many of them have been displaced since the earliest days of the war in 2022.
“We have seen examples of people staying in collective shelters since 2014, which is not acceptable. In addition, one third of Ukrainian households pay more than 70 percent of their income in rent. This is not sustainable, so we work with the national government to shape policies and support mechanisms, to assist internally displaced, returnees and refugees in accessing their right to proper housing”, says Teri Smith.
The team also collaborates with UNHCR partners and other social housing practitioners to identify methods and practices for moving the most vulnerable people into sustainable accommodation, and making sure that adequate housing is accessible and affordable for all displaced people.
The trio consists of Teri Smith, Stephen Catling and Nataliia Madzigon – who are all on assignment with UNHCR in Kyiv. Their work focuses especially on housing and social services, making sure those who are the most vulnerable get access to the social services they need and that they are, as far as possible, housed in durable and sustainable accommodation.
Approximately 2 million households have had their houses damaged or destroyed, with more than 85,000 people living in collective sites. Many of them have been displaced since the earliest days of the war in 2022.
“We have seen examples of people staying in collective shelters since 2014, which is not acceptable. In addition, one third of Ukrainian households pay more than 70 percent of their income in rent. This is not sustainable, so we work with the national government to shape policies and support mechanisms, to assist internally displaced, returnees and refugees in accessing their right to proper housing”, says Teri Smith.
The team also collaborates with UNHCR partners and other social housing practitioners to identify methods and practices for moving the most vulnerable people into sustainable accommodation, and making sure that adequate housing is accessible and affordable for all displaced people.
Cooperation is essential
NORCAP views localisation as a process of recognising, respecting and strengthening the leadership of local and national actors to better address the needs of affected populations and to prepare for ongoing and future responses.
Our approach is threefold and consists of building local skills and capacity, increasing the involvement and leadership of local organisations in humanitarian efforts that have historically been led by international agencies, and highlighting local partners’ achievements.
NORCAP has worked on localisation since 2017 and has significant experience in building local capacity from our pilot project in the Lake Chad region in Africa. When it comes to Ukraine however, the situation is very different.
“Ukraine is a country with sophisticated and well-developed policies and corresponding social service system. In most countries that humanitarian and development actors are used to working in, this is usually not the case”, says Stephen Catling.
Through a recent decentralisation reform, local authorities now hold significant responsibility for managing social services such as education, healthcare and housing. Therefore, cooperating with local authorities is essential for humanitarian actors working on localisation. At the same time, civil society and other local organisations are very proactive, and know what they want.
“Engaging with local actors in Ukraine means we must listen and genuinely understand what they need and how we can support. In other responses, humanitarians are often looking for someone to accept what they want to give, rather than properly looking for what is needed. Here in Ukraine, if you propose something that doesn’t fit with what people need, they won’t engage with you. It really drives home that one of the key elements of localisation is transferring the power to local authorities and being flexible in the types of responses we provide”, says Stephen Catling.
“Ukraine is a country with two very different situations – in the east, near the frontlines, there is a humanitarian emergency. In the west, we are looking more at a development situation where we need durable solutions”, says Daniel Sissling, Thematic Manager for Localisation in NORCAP.
Because of this situation, he is looking to explore and adapt the localisation model used in Ukraine.
“What we want to achieve through our support is for Ukrainian organisations to take a leading role in the decision making surrounding and the delivery of responses needed by affected communities”, Sissling says.
Humanitarian agencies must adapt
For our localisation trio on the ground however, there are issues that need to be sorted out immediately. There is an urgent need to get a reform in place, because the recent increase in the number of internally displaced and returnees means there will be additional pressure on the housing market.
It is the Ministry of Recovery and the Ministry of Social Policy that are responsible for housing and shelter issues in Ukraine. Getting their buy-in is important, but this can be challenging in a crisis context where resources are limited and the capacity overstretched.
“This is a country with its own political processes, power dynamics and laws and policies. They are not prepared to change everything overnight – especially when so much has already been changed by the war. This means humanitarian agencies must adapt to the local context and find ways to strengthen their existing capacity, while also planning for the long-term”, Nataliia Madzigon explains.
However, it is not just a question of getting people out of schools and other collective sites and into proper houses. Once there, many also need assistance in everyday life.
“About 30 percent of people currently living in collective sites have a disability and 40 percent are elderly. These people are particularly vulnerable and need a lot of support, but right now, there are not enough appropriate services in Ukraine to care for them. This means we spend a lot of time working out where to place these people in the existing system so that they can get the care they need”, says Stephen Catling.
“Humanitarians are here today but will be gone in the near future. And the local system needs to be strong enough to cope in the long run”, he adds.
Long-term influence
One collaboration which has made significant impact is the Perehid initiative – a technical cooperation between the Government of Ukraine, humanitarian donors, UN agencies and national and international NGOs which aims to develop an inclusive and shock-responsive social protection system in Ukraine.
“This is a good example of what can be achieved when all parties – government, humanitarian actors and civil society – work together. While there are still obstacles in our path, we see potential here for how we can ultimately phase out humanitarian actors and transfer our activities to the state social protection system”, Nataliia says.
Together with Teri and Stephen, she believes some of the results that will pay off in the long term are the influence on law and policy that have come from engagement with the national authorities.
“Although we still have a lot to figure out, the work we’re doing to ensure that people have good paths to exit collective sites and establish independent lives again, will be key to long-term recovery. It is also encouraging to see the rapid growth of civil society and how it overlaps with activism and rights-based approaches to humanitarian assistance and development. There are a lot of interesting and creative initiatives in Ukraine that will have an impact on their long-term development”, they conclude.