Examining the role of the private sector in health-related humanitarian response

Transcription

1 Examining the role of the private sector in health-related humanitarian response Workshop Summary Report November 2015

2 This workshop was convened with support from the Economic and Social Research Council grant ES/L000326/1 Global Health Security Seminar Series, and with support from the Centre for International Security Studies, University of Sydney. The event was also supported by the British International Studies Association Global Health Working Group. University of Sydney December 2015

3 Examining the role of the private sector in health-related humanitarian response Workshop Summary Report As several recent natural disasters and humanitarian crises such as the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa have revealed, the private sector can play an effective and complimentary role in responding to health emergencies. Moreover, as evidenced by the recent Australian Ministerial Statement on engaging the private sector in aid and development Creating shared value through partnership, it is a trend that many Western countries actively promote. Even so, periodically concerns have been expressed about the appropriate role, function and motivations of private industry actors in humanitarian relief efforts. On November 2015 the Centre for International Security Studies, University of Sydney, in collaboration with the United Kingdom s Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the British International Studies Association Global Health Working Group, convened a workshop to examine the role of the private sector in health-related humanitarian response. The workshop commenced on Thursday 19 November 2015 with three keynote presentations that included: - Mr Bruce Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer, Aspen Medical - Mr Blair Exell, First Assistant Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade - Dr Stewart Condon, President, Medicines Sans Frontiers (MSF) Australia The following day, a small group of invited scholars, practitioners, and industry representatives met to consider the current trends, constraints and opportunities, as well as the principles, practices, and sustainability of private sector engagement in health-related humanitarian response. Overall, views varied amongst participants on the role, function and appropriateness of private industry engagement in humanitarian crises, and this also extended to health emergencies. The diversity of views clearly indicates that more effort is required on all sides - traditional humanitarian responders need to work harder to better understand where other stakeholders such as industry and business can compliment humanitarian efforts, while private sector actors need to work harder to build trust through sustained commitment, partnership, and closer 1

4 adherence to humanitarian principles and ethos. Agreement did emerge that the traditional us verses them worldview is unhelpful when considering private sector participation in humanitarian relief, as it no longer accurately portrays the complexities of the international environment and the diversity of engaged stakeholders. In this context, several participants underlined the need to appreciate that the private sector is not a homogenous entity but in fact comprises very divergent actors with varying interests, priorities, business models and approaches. Other participants emphasised the need to also draw distinctions between foreign companies and domestic small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). One of the key challenges ahead, therefore, lies in determining how to leverage best practice examples of where industry players - both foreign and domestic - can support and compliment more traditional humanitarian responders. It was recognized that there is correspondingly a need for further research around specific areas, such as where convergences exist between humanitarian values of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, and business principles. Participants noted that the private sector welcomes the opportunity for such dialogue, and suggested that the sector has and is continuing to undergo transformation as evidenced by international agreements such as the UN Global Compact and organisations such as the Global Business Council for Health. Even so, it was acknowledged that a lot of more work is required by the private sector to ensure that corporate social responsibility is more than a tick-box exercise. A central focus of the workshop was the experience of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa as several participants either represented or worked for organisations that had been involved in responding to the crisis. Other participants were involved in researching various aspects of the crisis. Throughout the ensuring discussion it was observed that many of the world s leading companies actively sought out opportunities to assist affected communities through donating resources and equipment, but equally there were concerns over the reported behaviour of some locally-engaged companies that did not meet community expectations of acceptable behaviour. The Ebola experience was therefore mixed, with some companies closing operations and refusing to pay staff while other companies reportedly went to considerable lengths to remain operating and support local affected communities. Despite these varied experiences, it was also observed that there appears to be broader trend, supported by governments, to more closely engage the private 2

5 sector in humanitarian relief efforts, including health emergencies. A number of participants remarked on efforts by governments of the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and the United States to encourage increased collaboration, suggesting it represents a discernable upward trajectory of private sector participation in humanitarian operations, irrespective of whether they were health-related or not. Some participants questioned the need to willingly accept this trend, suggesting that the emphases being placed by governments on the benefits of closer private sector engagement are overly optimistic. Other participants questioned the motivations of governments, querying whether this was more about encouraging international trade and investment as opposed to facilitating the development of vulnerable communities. Yet other participants advocated in favour of closer engagement, arguing that there are valuable lessons that can still be learned from the private sector that go beyond service provision in areas such as healthcare and logistics, to building and enhancing resilient communities. Participants were also divided on the extent to which profit should be a factor in determining the legitimacy of private sector participation, with some suggesting that this remains the core tension between non-government organisations and private industry. Others were less convinced, advocating instead that while there may be certain areas or levels of profit that are inappropriate, the larger consideration should be the extent to which companies were dedicated to helping communities develop. Further questions were raised in this context around whether companies engaged in humanitarian efforts should be required to disclose details of earnings and how much employees are remunerated. There was agreement that private sector actors working in the humanitarian space needed to demonstrate greater transparency, sharing after-action reviews and performance evaluation reports, which is common amongst other responders. It was also identified, however, that expectations around additional reporting requirements need to be reasonable, particularly in relation to SMEs that may lack the human resources to complete such tasks. It was generally agreed that the private sector possesses a comparative advantage in certain key areas. These notably included resilience building and disaster risk reduction, which were identified as fields of practice where the private sector has considerable experience. Even so, a few participants challenged the perception that the private sector has a greater tolerance and willingness to accept risk, citing the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa as one example. Where there did emerge widespread consensus was on the need for further research and collaboration amongst key stakeholders in specific areas. These included data 3

6 collection and analysis, identifying the commensurability between humanitarian and business values, and measures to improve transparency, accountability and evaluation between all stakeholders engaged in health-related humanitarian response. To that end, it was agreed that a small working group of interested participants would develop a consensus output statement (in their individual capacity) that identified priorities for further action, which is appended to this summary report. 4

7 Global Health Security Sydney Seminar Outcome Statement As several recent disasters and humanitarian crises have revealed, the private sector has taken an active role in health-related humanitarian response. The private sector, like other parts of society, is not homogenous though. One of the key challenges ahead, therefore, is in understanding how to leverage the strengths and distinct characteristics of different industry players in supporting and complementing more traditional humanitarian responders. In this, we see a critical need for further research to inform future practice. This includes: 1. Establishing the basis for private sector collaboration in health-related humanitarian response - while it is recognised that in an emergency an imperative may emerge for all hands on deck to respond, it is more important that they are instead good hands on deck with the appropriate skills, knowledge, interests, reputation, and capacity to respond effectively. Accordingly, more research into what constitutes a legitimate private sector actor in health emergencies is warranted to facilitate sustainable, long-term engagement. 2. Investigating the complementarity between humanitarian and business principles - we recognise that there may be a number of correlations between the universally accepted humanitarian values (humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence) and business norms, but at present these links are not clearly articulated. We therefore recommend that further collaboration and research is undertaken into unpacking the convergences and divergences between these different sets of principles to further enhance, strengthen and guide humanitarian practice in health emergencies. 3. Interrogating how and where private sector actors successfully contribute to health-related humanitarian response - recognising that the private sector is not homogenous, there is a need to clearly identify the different types of roles and functions that private sector actors can contribute in both the immediate (e.g. service provision, facilitation, logistics, etc.) and longer-term context (e.g. development, health system strengthening, etc.). This is especially important in the context of an environment where many humanitarian actors already have well-established roles and functions. We recommend, therefore, further interrogation of private sector actors responsibilities in the crisis-to-postdisaster transition period, as well as any comparative advantages they may bring. 5

8 4. Enhancing independent evaluation and transparency mechanisms for all actors in health-related humanitarian response - there is a genuine need for greater transparency in what works well, and what does not, when responding to health emergencies. More traditional humanitarian actors still have some way to go in improving in this area but nonetheless transparency standards are in place and evaluations are now a common feature of assistance. These are practices that the private sector could also contribute to, share lessons from, and incorporate into their own activities. To that end, we recommend that further research be undertaken to facilitate independent evaluation and enhanced transparency of all actors in health-related humanitarian response. 6

9 For more information Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Centre for International Security Studies T E adam.kamradt-scott@sydney.edu.au CRICOS 0026A