InterAction Protection Mission – Myanmar: Findings and Recommendations

InterAction travelled toMyanmar from February 26 through March 9, 2017. The team visited Yangon, as well asMyitkyina and Sittwe, with a focus on NGO roles in relation to the overall protection leadership, coordination, and strategies. Following a pre trip desk review and calls with key personnel in-country, the InterAction team conducted one-to-one and focus group meetings with NGOs, UN agencies and donor government representatives. A series of debrief sessions on preliminary findings were conducted prior to leaving the country, and this written report captures the detailed findings and recommendations.

The recommendations seek to identify actions which could build on the foundation of the experienced, motivated and skilled local, national, and international humanitarian actors present in Myanmar. Drawing on the basic framework of collective approaches to achieve protection outcomes outlined in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Policy on Protection in Humanitarian Action, this report highlights opportunities in the following areas:

1. Using a whole-of-system approach to achieving protection outcomes
2. Establishing good information flow and analysis as a basis for problem-solving
3. Diversifying ways of working in pursuit of protection outcomes
4. Designing and implementing protection strategies