Lessons from humanitarian clusters to strengthen health system responses to mass displacement in low and middle-income countries: A scoping review

Contributing Factors in Whether Displaced Households Want to Receive Humanitarian Information from Humanitarian Actors: Iraq Multi-Cluster Needs Assessment

“…Due to political conflict and insurgency and the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of displaced households in need of national humanitarian support has increased in Iraq [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Because humanitarian resources are limited, however, it is important to identify types of information and levels of assistance needed based on the specific conditions of displaced households.…”

“…In this study, factors contributing to the desire of displaced people to benefit from humanitarian assistance programs varied among displaced groups. Technology, including online and mobile communications, can be used to provide displaced households with information about jobs, health care services, and transportation to health care facilities or marketplaces by humanitarian actors [ 5 , 7 ]. Most IDP and returnee households have at least one member with access to a smartphone.…”

“…Iraq, which suffers uniquely from recurring wars and conflicts, has been affected by the pandemic just like every other region of the world [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]. Due to the Iraq conflict and COVID-19 pandemic, the number of displaced households in need of national humanitarian support has increased [ 4 , 5 , 7 ]. According to previous studies, forcibly displaced people have been economically disadvantaged since before the COVID-19 pandemic, but they may have been seriously affected in terms of economics due to measures to prevent the spread of the virus [ 8 ].…”

How can humanitarian services provision during mass displacement better support health systems? An exploratory qualitative study of humanitarian service provider perspectives in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh

“…There are practical benefits to engaging religious leaders, requiring further research to understand both opportunities and risks. Cash transfers were reportedly not used in Cox's Bazar, but a recent scoping review showed these have been successful in supporting livelihoods during displacement ( Durrance-Bagale et al., 2020 ) as also shown in Yemen ( Ecker et al., 2019 ). This lack of flexibility from NGOs is reflective of a top-down approach to humanitarian management, while the alternative of engaging displaced communities and working with religious leaders - as described by several interviewees - aligns better with the Grand Bargain, a commitment by donors to ensure those receiving aid have a voice in decisions that affect them ( Inter-Agency Standing Committee 2020 ).…”

“…Durrance-Bagale and colleagues have highlighted the need for co-ordinated, integrated, and co-operative responses at all levels (international, national, subnational) and by all actors (e.g. humanitarian system agencies, governments, civil society), contextualised to displaced and host population needs and socio-cultural realities ( Durrance-Bagale et al., 2020 ). During the Covid-19 pandemic, along with direct health risks, indirect risks including disruption of camp supply chains, restructuring of humanitarian staffing and redirecting of resources to enable an adequate response could potentially overwhelm health systems and infrastructure in mass displacement settings ( Lau et al., 2020 ).…”