Annual Report 2008 - 2009 - Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

DIPLOMA IN HUMANITARIAN
ASSISTANCE IN AFRICA
Sustainable solutions to the problems of
disasters and development can only be
achieved when people have local access to
training in regions that are most affected by
humanitarian emergencies. LSTM is pioneering
‘Fair Training’ in Africa by providing the DHA in
collaboration with local partners with a view
to long-term sustainability. Just as Fair Trade
promotes equitable trading standards that
offer poor people direct access to markets and
the means to develop sustainable livelihoods,
Fair Training aims to promote justice and
empowerment by offering direct access to
quality assured education and training. This
is delivered through partnerships targeting
local priorities and facilitates sustainable
human resource development in countries
that are affected by poverty and vulnerable to
humanitarian disasters.
Located at Wits Rural Facility in South Africa,
DHA Africa attracted over 130 applications,
resulting in enrolment of 43 participants from
16 different countries. Of these, 79% were
African nationals, including participants from
South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi,
Kenya, Uganda, Cameroon, Nigeria, Sierra Leone
and Senegal, with others from the US, Australia,
Italy, France, Sweden and the UK. The intensive,
multidisciplinary, residential programme was
delivered by faculty from LSTM, MSF, Wits
P&DM and experts from leading humanitarian
organisations within the region. The experience
of participants enabled a high level of critical
discussion and analysis covering a wide range
of humanitarian challenges.
On the basis of this success, we are exploring
a five year project in which we will work with
local counterparts and train approximately 250
professionals. Initially, the DHA will be awarded
by LSTM and quality assured through our QA
framework. In the medium term, we intend to
offer the award jointly with P&DM, Wits. It is
anticipated that, over the 5-year period as local
capacity increases, LSTM’s input will diminish
and P&DM will become the principal local
academic provider for the Diploma. In the fifth
year P&DM also plans to launch a Masters in the
Management of Humanitarian Programmes.
DIPLOMA IN HUMANITARIAN
ASSISTANCE IN AFRICA
LSTM, in association with The Graduate School of Public & Development Management
(P&DM) at The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and Médecins Sans
Frontières has provided a six-week intensive training programme in humanitarian
assistance leading to the award of a Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance (DHA).
LSTM ANNUAL REPORT 35