Durable Solutions Through Community Resilience - IOM/FAO/UN Habitat

During the reporting period, from 01 November 2022 to 30 June 2023, the project focused on the preparatory activities as foreseen in the inception phase. This entailed engagement with the key stakeholders, mainly through the project launch, recruitment of staff, preparation of terms of reference for the scope of work, conducting assessments, facilitating community-based planning (CBP), conflict analysis, gender analysis, baseline, breakdown of the action plan and details of activities, as well as the engagement of implementing partners. For the reporting period, the following key activities were implemented: •A project launching workshop was successfully carried out at the federal level. The workshop was attended by 39 participants from project partners, such as the SDC, the Sida, Ethiopias Disaster Risk Management commission (EDRMC), the representatives of internally displaced persons (IDPs), the regional governments from the Somali and Oromia regions, as well as IOM, FAO, and UN Habitat, which are the project executive agencies, representatives from Embassies and other invited guests. •A regional project inception workshop was organised in May 2023 with the participating regions, project partners and other interested actors in the regions. The two-day workshop drew about 83 participants, representing a diverse mix of Regional, Zonal and Woreda level governments, IDP representatives, and implementing agencies. •A conflict analysis tool was developed, and a conflict analysis workshop was conducted in the Oromia and Somali regions. As a result, data collection was completed for the conflict analysis across all project locations and report writing is in progress. •Stakeholder analysis was completed across Somali and Oromia regions. Accordingly, engagement with several stakeholders was carried out with the objective of creating awareness on the project amongst the various officials at relevant regional bureaus, joint planning, and identification of areas of collaboration to avoid duplication. •A manual and tools were developed for the CBP role across the project locations and a CBP exercise is currently ongoing in project locations of Somali region. •Kebele selection criteria were developed in consultation with the program team, regional government, and stakeholders in Oromia and Somali regions. •Labor and market assessments were initiated to inform the design and implementation of viable business models used to address underlying causes, recurring and external shocks, and vulnerabilities. IOM is currently recruiting a consultancy firm to conduct a comprehensive market assessment in the project target locations across Somali and Oromia regions. Accordingly, a Terms of Reference (TOR) was developed, and selection of a consultancy firm is in progress. •A Durable Solution Working Group (DSWG) was activated in Oromia, Somali, and Afar regions, with workshops and regular meetings being held during the reporting period. •TOR for Livelihood, Natural resource, and irrigation specialists were prepared and cleared for employment of the said staff. Similarly, the preparation of a Request for Proposal (RFP) for engagement of Implementing Partners (IP) was done for the delivery of services on irrigation and other livelihood activities. FAO used the FAO Ethiopia organization wide Call for Expression of Interest to obtain the partners. The selection is being finalized and engagement ongoing. •A TOR for conducting a gender analysis was developed and a call for consultancy is advertised to conduct the analysis in the Oromia and Somali regions and the selection of consultancy firm is in progress. •The TOR for the Steering Committee were developed jointly among IOM, FAO, and UN-Habitat for the overall management of key stakeholders of the project. •Several coordination meetings have been carried out among the project executing agencies, IOM-FAO-UN Habitat. With the objective to familiarize delegates on the displacement situation, the positive impact of SDC-funded project, and the future of displacement in the region, SDC delegations led by the Deputy Director of SDC were on a two-day mission to the Somali region. Results for reported period 1 November 2022 to 31 December 2023: IOM consolidated a comprehensive report for Sida and SDC, the two donors to the project, covering the period November 2022 (start of the project) to December 2023 with its two consortium member partners (UN Habitat and FAO). Performances: During this period, the cooperation among consortium members was defined, agreed upon and established, in regard of the strategy and of the operational and administrative arrangements. Despite the fact that the 3 organizations are belonging to the UN entity, mutual understanding and operational/administrative compatibility were not immediate and required joint efforts to reach a common ground. IOM displayed leadership in facilitating this. However, the recruitment of the project manager was delayed and lengthy. The person started informally by September 2023 when the inception report was presented to donors. The recruitment process was completed only in December 2023, more than one year after the start of the project. Likewise, a steering committee for the project was supposed to be established as soon as possible, but did not meet during the reporting period (that is to say, the first 14 months of the 48 month-long activity period). It met for the first time in February 2024. It is co-chaired by the Emergency Disaster Risk Management Commissionner (EDRMC) and the Ministry of Peace. It is a key component of the project, in regard of accountability, advocacy, inter-gency and intra-governmental and regional coordination, and strategic directions. During the reporting period, IOM and its partners engaged in an extensive inception process to ensure that the project would start on the right foot. This process, also lengthy, was prolonged from 6 to 8 months, as the consortium members discovered that their endeavor was more complicated than expected. The process had ambitious terms of reference, like delivering a set of assessments and analyses, that were not achieved by the end of the inception process. The deliverables were completed later during the implementation period (as from July 2023), delaying the implementation of workplans and project outputs. To this date, the gender assessment is still awaited. The risk that gender is not properly mainstreamed has been shifted from low to high in the risk matrix. The delays of project outputs started to irritate the target communities and the regional authorities who are eager to see concrete results of socioeconomical recovery for formerly displaced target populations and their host-communities. This was brought to the attention of the donors during the December field trip to Somali and Oromia. Donors urged IOM and partners to accelerate the implementation pace and to deliver expected services to the communities. The immediate priorities, according to the visited communities, were the rehabilitation of essential infrastructures, like water points, schools and health posts, the upgrade of shelters from emergency models in plastic sheeting to permanent shelters, and above all a predictable access to and availability of decent livelihoods, not only related to farming. Civil documentation was a pressing matter as well, which is paramount for the freedom of movement and for engaging into livelihoods activities outside the sites without hassle from the local police. This includes legal arrangements with host-community leaders and authorities in regard of housing, land and properties. Relocated, returned and locally integrated displaced populations were still identified by host-communities and by themselves as 'IDPs' in December 2023, although they had spent more than a year on a 'durable solution' site. This demonstrates the complexity of durable solutions. It is far more complicated than organizing a movement of populations from point A to point B with buses and trucks, as authorities tend to simplify such process. SDC and Sida found irresponsible to move IDPs to return and relocation sites without securing first acceptable living conditions there, including opportunities for livelihoods. A Do-No-Harm approach was recommended to IOM and partners. One should recall that food aid was suspended from May to December 2023 nation-wide due to the vulnerability of the targeting and monitoring systems to major risks of diversions. Until these systems were overhauled and food distributions resumed in 2024 for food insecure people in Somali and Oromia regions, including IDPs and recently returned and relocated IDPs, project beneficiaries had therefore absolutely no resources to live on, except what they could have spared or borrowed, engaging often in negative coping strategies. Relocations and returns had made them more vulnerable, while the project is supposed to build their resilience. The severe under-funding of WFP's Country Strategic Plan and appeals, and of the World Bank's Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP) in 2024 results to durable solutions beneficiaries being excluded from from food- and cash aid schemes despite their vulnerability. It is therefore of utmost importance that the FAO delivers on Outcome 2: "Enhanced economic status of the vulnerable members in the displacement-affected communities through facilitated opportunities for livelihood diversification options through on-farm and off-farm interventions and increased access to finance (main responsible FAO)". Reported outcomes: In the reporting period, the following key activities were implemented, most of them related to the inception phase: - A community-based planning (CBP) was conducted, and six community action plans (CAPs) and six community management Committee (CMCs) were established for target Woredas across project locations. - Seven community-driven priority infrastructures and facilities were identified through CBP across the project target woredas in Oromia (4) and Somali (3) regions for rehabilitation and material support. - IOM in coordination with Somali Region Disaster Risk Management Bureau (DRMB) conducted voluntary registration for relocating households from Qoloji IDP camp to Bayahaw and Goryawil planned relocation sites. Accordingly, a total of 1,073 households (8,679 individuals (4,556 female, 4,123 male)) were registered. - IOM in collaboration with the Regional Security and Administration Office established four peace and conflict resolution committees in Oromia (Chinaksen Woreda) and Somali (Erer, Awbare and Kebribayah woredas) regions. - IOM completed a Livelihood Needs and Market Assessment (LMA) in the Oromia and Somali regions to inform the design and implementation of viable business models used to address underlying causes, recurring and external shocks, and vulnerabilities. - A Durable Solution Working Group (DSWG) was activated in Oromia, Somali, and Afar regions, with workshops and regular meetings were held during the reporting period. - UN Habitat completed Environment Assessment in all the project locations to understand the environmental conditions as well as to identify prevailing environmental issues and disaster risks. - IOM, FAO, and UN Habitat conducted a joint baseline survey across all project locations and under each of the following project components: livelihoods (on-farm and off-farm), community-based planning, peacebuilding, and social cohesion, CBP, and Housing, Land, and Property (HLP). The purpose of the baseline survey was to assess the initial status of key indicators and serve as a reference point for assessing changes and impact of the project interventions. - Completed the gender analysis and the report is ready for submission. - A joint feasibility study on housing needs and conditions was conducted which will guide the construction of adequate, durable housing for displacement-affected communities in the relocation sites of Bayahow and Goryoal in the Somali region. - Reconnaissance mission conducted in all the project sites by UN-Habitat to undertake rapid spatial assessments to better understand the existing situation as an initial step for commencing the implementation of project activities. - UN-Habitat conducted rapid housing assessment in all project sites. The assessments revealed that most of the housing units onsite are of low and sub-standard quality. Most shelters in Awbare, Qoloji, Darera Arba, Dhurwale, Ganda Buno, and Magalacad are emergency or transitional shelters built with canvas, plastic sheets, tarpaulins, corrugated iron sheets, and tree branches. In some areas, these temporary shelters need to be replaced with more durable housing. (see details under outcome 3, output 3.3). - A consultative workshop on the Settlement Plan for Goryaowl planned relocation site was held in Jigjiga on November 17, 2023, by UN-Habitat to collect valuable input from relevant government officials and community representatives. Assessment of land tenure systems in Oromia and Somali regions have been conducted by UN Habitat to understand the opportunities and challenges towards ensuring Housing, Land and Property (HLP) rights of the DACs. Preliminary draft reports have been produced incorporating data and recommendations about site specific land tenure issues. - Capacity gaps and training needs assessment was conducted to inform capacity development interventions of UN-Habitat pertaining to areas like GIS and Remote Sensing, HLP, IDP Governance, Land Management etc. Sida is satisfied that these activities were conducted, but would have been even more positive if the second half of 2023 had seen services being delivered to communities at a higher grade and pace.

The overarching objective is to "contribute to durable solutions through improved conditions for sustainable socio-economic recovery and peaceful co-existence of disaster-affected communities with particular attention to the most vulnerable groups while strengthening local government capacity in responding to the needs of internal displacement". To promote the provision of sustainable support allowing for short to medium to long-term development, project operations are two-staged where activities take place both in locations of displacement identifying and supporting households with return, relocation, and (re)integration, while simultaneously intervening in hosting communities to support socio-economic (re)integration through a whole of society area-based interventions. The programme has 4 specific outcomes, each UN partner responsible for one outcome each, with the fourth outcome being joint for ensuring complementarity, coordination, lessons learnt, etc.: Outcome 1: Target communities are supported to relocate, return, and (re)integrate through the implementation of community-based planning and multi-sectoral recovery interventions aimed at building community cohesion and resilience (main responsible IOM) Outcome 2: Enhanced economic status of the vulnerable members in the displacement-affected communities through facilitated opportunities for livelihood diversification options through on-farm and off-farm interventions and increased access to finance (main responsible FAO) Outcome 3: Regional and woreda administrations can facilitate sustainable reintegration of IDPs through the woreda development (main responsible UN Habitat) Outcome 4: The Governments capacity in mainstreaming durable solutions in its programmes is maintained and enhanced (All UN agencies)