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1 Conseil UE DOCUMENT PARTIALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC ( ) Council of the European Union PUBLIC Brussels, 27 June 2016 (OR. en) 10602/16 LIMITE 48 DEVGEN 146 ALIM 15 ONU 78 FAO 33 COAFR 194 MAMA 130 MOG 82 COEST 174 COASI 139 COLAC 47 PROCIV 47 RELEX 566 NOTE From: To: Subject: SK Delegation Working Party on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid Slovak Presidency work programme for the Working Party on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid () Delegations will find in Annex the programme of the Slovak Presidency for the Working Party on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid /16 kp/jj 1 DGC 2C LIMITE EN

2 SLOVAK PRESIDENCY WORK PROGRAMME FOR THE WORKING PARTY ON HUMANITARIAN AID AND FOOD AID () Main priorities Response to humanitarian crises July - December 2016 ANNEX In line with the Presidency Trio (NL - SK - MT) work programme 1, during the Slovak Presidency will continue monitoring ongoing, protracted and emerging humanitarian crises, whether natural or man-made. Increased attention will be paid to Level 3 as well as forgotten crises. will focus on identifying ways to improve the humanitarian response through coherent and coordinated action by the Member States and the Commission (DG ECHO). The Slovak Presidency will strive to provide a platform for strategic discussions to this end. will continue to formulate common humanitarian messages, allowing Member States and the Commission and the EEAS to speak with one voice vis-à-vis third countries and partners. With a view to the current migration crisis, during the Slovak Presidency will place special emphasis on the issue of forced displacement and the humanitarian situation of refugees and IDPs as well as host communities and other affected populations in the relevant countries outside the EU. Follow-up to the World Humanitarian Summit The number of people adversely affected by humanitarian crises has almost doubled over the last decade. Despite record contributions from donors, humanitarian funding cannot keep up with the needs. Humanitarian intervention must therefore reflect the changing international environment / /16 kp/jj 2

3 The World Humanitarian Summit (WHS), held in May 2016, sought to forge new partnerships in creating a better framework for effective and efficient provision of humanitarian assistance. will follow up on the results of the summit and will build on the work under the previous Presidency Trio (IT - LV - LU) and especially the position of the EU and its Member States for the WHS 2 agreed during the Netherlands Presidency. The Slovak Presidency will take over at a crucial moment after the announcement of all stakeholders' core and individual commitments. It will be of paramount importance to build on the political momentum generated by the summit in order to move swiftly towards the implementation of the commitments. The WHS has brought the world's attention to the nature and scale of the changes required when striving to tackle the challenges before us. An ambitious follow-up to the summit is all the more important considering that humanitarian aid alone can neither adequately address nor sustainably reduce the growing needs of the most vulnerable people. A more coherent approach is required that will focus on addressing root causes, preventing and ending conflicts and bridging the gap between humanitarian and development efforts, among others. The Slovak Presidency will help to coordinate Member States' and the EU's follow-up actions to the WHS, based on our collective commitments as well as in the light of those made by other stakeholders. The European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid - implementation of the second action plan will continue to promote the European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid as the cornerstone of the EU's and Member States' humanitarian aid. The group will also continue to support the implementation of the second Consensus Implementation Plan 3 with a view to improving the coherence, effectiveness and quality of the EU's humanitarian interventions. The Slovak Presidency, together with other Member States, will continue to play an active role in the Task Force that champions the actions under the new Implementation Plan / / /16 kp/jj 3

4 Specific thematic priorities Gender Gender inequality prevents women and girls from leading a safe, healthy, dignified life and developing and achieving their full potential. The World Humanitarian Summit reaffirmed that targeted protection of the most vulnerable populations must be placed at the heart of humanitarian intervention. Women and girls are often disproportionately negatively affected by humanitarian crises. Disasters kill more women than men, countries hit by conflicts and disasters have the highest rate of maternal mortality, social and economic inequality deepens, and the prevalence of all forms of gender-based violence is significantly increased during armed conflict (it affects about 70 percent of women and girls in a conflict-related humanitarian crisis). During the Slovak Presidency, will discuss what concrete steps can be taken to better empower women and girls in humanitarian response, as they are often the first responders in times of crisis and play a primary role in post-conflict and post-disaster reconstruction. We will build on the work of previous presidencies on gender equality, gender-based violence (GBV) and the protection of women, girls, men and boys in emergencies. The Slovak Presidency will focus on a holistic approach to gender and humanitarian aid including on how humanitarian aid modalities address the specific needs of women and girls. The Call to Action will be promoted as well. A workshop on GBV in emergencies will take place back-to-back with the meeting in September /16 kp/jj 4

5 Education in emergencies Almost half of the world's refugees and internally displaced persons are children. Humanitarian intervention must therefore take into account the specific needs and capacities of children at all stages of preparedness and response, as well as prioritising the education and protection of children affected by disasters and conflicts. The right to education is most at risk during emergencies. Humanitarian crises disrupt access to and provision of education and contribute to higher drop-out and lower completion rates. Without spending time at school, girls face a greater risk of human trafficking and child marriage, and boys of recruitment by armed groups and child labour. In the long term education contributes to reducing children s vulnerability to disasters, and helps them build a new life. Education in emergencies can therefore be perceived as a 'life-saving measure'. The Slovak Presidency will place special emphasis on promoting and strengthening the crucial role that education should play in humanitarian operations. The Presidency will invite Member States and other relevant stakeholders to present their policy work on education in emergencies to promote best practices and share lessons learned. Links will also be drawn to other topics such as gender and forced displacement. The Slovak Presidency also welcomes the creation of the Education Cannot Wait Fund announced at the World Humanitarian Summit and will follow up on this initiative within. The humanitarian-development nexus The protracted nature of humanitarian crises and forced displacement is becoming the norm. Their scale and severity require interventions extending beyond the emergency nature of immediate humanitarian assistance, creating a need for longer-term and sustainable response by development actors /16 kp/jj 5

6 A more coherent and holistic global approach is needed, integrating humanitarian aid, development cooperation and political engagement while respecting humanitarian principles, within the wider framework of the resilience agenda. The self-reliance of affected populations must be fostered and conditions for the safe return of displaced people created. As protracted displacement is not just a humanitarian challenge but should also be viewed from a development perspective, the Slovak Presidency will pay particular attention to bridging the humanitarian-development divide in order to identify durable solutions for preventing forced displacement from becoming protracted. The Slovak Presidency will maintain the momentum created by the European Commission s Communication on Forced Displacement and Development 4 and the Council conclusions on the EU approach to forced displacement and development 5, and will use the opportunity created by the World Humanitarian Summit to look closely at forced and protracted displacement through the lens of both humanitarian aid and development cooperation. The Presidency will invite relevant stakeholders and Member States to share examples and best practices from the field and will cooperate closely with the CODEV Working Party. Nutrition and Food Security In accordance with agreed procedures, will continue to prepare statements to be made on behalf of the EU and its Member States at meetings of the World Food Programme Executive Board. Nutrition and food security will remain a key issue when discussing humanitarian needs in relation to specific crises /16 + REV / /16 kp/jj 6

7 INDICATIVE SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS (+ workshop on GBV) Informal (with CODEV) a.m. p.m. 14 July Thursday x x 15 July Friday x 8 September Thursday x x 9 September Friday x x x 29 September Thursday (workshop) () 27 October Thursday x x 28 October Friday x 10 November Thursday x x 11 November Friday x 8 December Thursday x x 9 December Friday x 10602/16 kp/jj 7

8 CALENDAR OF MAJOR INTERNATIONAL EVENTS (t.b.c.) July ECOSOC High-level political forum on sustainable development ECOSOC High-level segment on the theme 'Implementing the post-2015 development agenda: moving from commitments to results' New York New York August World Humanitarian Day September UNDP, second regular session New York UNICEF, second regular session New York UNGA 71 New York UN WOMEN, second regular session New York to a provision of the ICRC draft resolution no 2/32 67th Standing Committee UNHCR October 2016 Meeting of States to IHL 67th Executive Committee UNHCR 19th Standing Committee on Programme and Finances IOM International Dialogue on Migration November 2016 WFP Executive Board, second regular session 108th Council IOM December 2016 High Commissioner s Dialogue on Protection - UNHCR Rome 10602/16 kp/jj 8

9 TEAM CONTACT DETAILS: Chair: Beáta Lipovská Telephone: / DELETED (mobile) beata.lipovska@mzv.sk Co-chair: Petra Bučeková Telephone: / DELETED (mobile) petra.bucekova@mzv.sk Expert: Mária Žatková Telephone: / DELETED (mobile) maria.zatkova@mzv.sk 10602/16 kp/jj 9