Aceh Emergency Response and Transitional Recovery ... - UNDP

Lessons LearnedMajor disasters such as the 26 December 2004 tsunami seriously test theability and capacity of the international humanitarian and developmentcommunity to respond rapidly and effectively, as well as to ensureproper approaches and mechanisms towards smoothening the transitionfrom emergency relief to recovery and longer term reconstruction. Challengesexperienced and methods to address them create an important opportunity to learnlessons, and to institutionalize means of ensuring these lessons are incorporatedinto future efforts.UNDP has participated in and supported a number of lessons learned events undertakenby the UN system throughout 2005. UNDP will also undertake a formalprocess early in the New Year to document lessons learned in response to the tsunamidisaster. However, the following provide an early indication of lessonslearned thus far in UNDP's tsunami response efforts.Table 11 -- Lessons Learned MatrixArea Success Factors Challenges• Immediate employment effortsprovide a good basis forearly engagement of affectedcommunities to generate lostincome to meet basic needs,ameliorate trauma, and mostespecially to serve as an entrypoint for medium- and longertermsustainable livelihoods interventions.• Early agreement on standardsfor "cash for work" helped toprovide level benefits to beneficiariesand prevent competitionbetween organizations.• Early investment in wastemanagement created significantopportunities for linkingclean-up efforts into longertermwaste management improvementsand recycling initiatives.(1) ImmediateEmploymentand Labour(2) Recovery ofLivelihoods• Early support for "cash forwork" activities allowed part-• Gender must be a focus fromthe beginning in order to ensurebetter targeting of employmentschemes.• Standard methods and formatsfor managing "cash for work"should be developed andshared to reduce formulationperiods in the early aftermathof disasters.• UNDP requires more flexiblepartnership modalities to rapidlyengage NGOs undertakingemergency operations.• Lack of reliable available informationin the initial aftermathof a disaster on this scalemakes planning and formulationdifficult, so modalities arerequired to link assessment directlyinto delivery.• Appropriateness of temporaryemployment schemes needs tobe closely monitored at locallevels since the transition tolivelihoods support can happenearlier in some areas thanothers (considering local resourcebases, income opportunities,etc.).• Procurement capacity andprocedural issues delayed con-38