Citation

Gibbons P, Roughneen D, McDermott R, Maitra S. Disasters 2019; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Lecturer at UCD Centre for Humanitarian Action.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/disa.12386

PMID

31270823

Abstract

The humanitarian system has grown organically over a generation into a complex system bound by a common primary mandate. The guiding principles of the humanitarian system provide humanitarian actors with its unique identity and separates it from other aid stakeholders. However, all evidence suggests that humanitarian actors will extend their reach and engage in new and unprecedented ways with an expanded mandate. Now more than ever humanitarian actors are challenged to retain the moral high ground and put disaster affected people at the centre of humanitarian action. This paper proposes that the humanitarian system introduce a new principle - Humanitarian Subsidiarity. It moves the conception of subsidiarity beyond meanings ascribed by the Catholic Church and the European Union and links it instead to the attributes of agency, accountability and trust to find accommodation with the core humanitarian principles. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Accountability; Agency; Humanitarian Principles; Humanitarian Subsidiarity; Trust