10,000 Reasons

I was fortunate enough to get an briefing of the current Haiti situation from Bev Oda, CIDA's minister, this past Saturday. The challenges faced by all the countries seeking to assist are indeed daunting.  Some things I discovered:

• all orphans destined for Canadian adoptions have been located and identified
• 90% of the prospective adoptive parents have been contacted, with the rest to be reached shortly
• the airport in Port-au-Prince is handling 140 relief flights a day, with a two-hour turnaround time to offload
• the Haitian government is asking that all fire and police offering to assist from other countries come as teams and as self-contained units
• the World Food Programme has set up 4 major food centres, with 10 more to be added next week
• 7 large field hospitals are up and running, with 11 smaller ones assisting
• 2 more water purification systems are about to be transported in by the Canadian military
• Jamaica has permitted its airfield to be used for re-fueling of supply planes
• the International Red Cross has sent in 30 doctors from Quebec and is currently training 200 more

It's all obviously a logistical nightmare and it's virtually impossible to get around in these early days. Donating countries are endeavouring to coordinate - an exercise often facilitated by the United Nations.One figure Ms. Oda provided staggered me, however. Currently there are 10,000 non-governmental organizations now operating in Haiti during this crisis. That's an incredible number and coordinating them constitutes a formidable challenge. Practically, that means that all of these organizations are making direct appeals for funds - something that can lead to donor fatigue and confusion. We learned through the 2005 Tsunami that uncoordinated aid can have a significant debilitating effect.Following the Tsunami, many of us involved in relief and development work began calling for some kind of coalition that could serve to simplify the giving process and cut through much of the confusion. Progress on such an idea has been slow and now here we are again - thousands of well-meaning appeals filling the airwaves, leaving many Canadians unsure as to who they should donate their hard-earned dollars to. This is a legitimate problem requiring some serious thought.Perhaps the Haiti experience will now move us towards the implementation of a broad coalition.  Britain has had such a model for years and it has proved highly effective at moving money out quickly and using those funds to incentivize NGOs to coordinate.  They provide their version of a 1-800 number that anyone can call to donate.  The coalition then serves as something of a clearing house to apportion the funds speedily and effectively.  But it's more than that. The NGOs themselves are provided funds for their particular fields of expertise. They are also required to work with the other NGOs on the ground to ensure as little duplication as possible. It's a remarkably streamlined system and has proved its effectiveness for years now.It just so happens that a fledgling movement of this kind is emerging in Canada. Called "The Humanitarian Coalition," the organization is presently made up of only four organizations, but they are significant players with impressive track records in disaster relief - CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec, and Save the Children Canada. More need to join and perhaps it's something CIDA could help bring about, though not operate. Some agencies are hesitant to join the initiative because they might not get as much funding and they would have to work under a larger plan. But this is precisely what Haiti requires right now and it's time Canada entered into the 21st century of effective humanitarian relief. Presently we're inundated with appeals and we're responding generously, as we always do. Yet perhaps the Haiti experience will take our relief efforts to the next level so that we are all the better prepared the next time, wherever that may be.  If you're interested, call 1-800-464-9154 or go www.thehumanitariancoalition.ca