Network Paper 74: Improving Communication Between Humanitarian Aid Agencies and Crisis-Affected People

The role and importance of effective communication with crisis-affected people have grown significantly in recent years, driven by the proliferation of accountability initiatives within the humanitarian sector, the changing role of media development organisations as providers of humanitarian information and the explosion in information and communication technology (ICT) in crisis-affected countries.

Operated by two media development organisations, BBC Media Action and Internews, with funding from the UK Department for International Development (DFID), infoasaid was established in 2010 to improve the quality of humanitarian responses by maximising the amount of accurate and timely information available to humanitarian responders and crisis-affected populations through enhanced communication between them in an emergency.
The project, which came to a close in 2012, had two main objectives:

1. To strengthen the capacity and preparedness of the humanitarian system to respond to the information and communication needs of crisis-affected populations.

2. To partner with aid agencies to help inform and support their communication response in emergencies.