Paper details

Paper authors	Milton Amayun
In panel on	Local humanitarian leadership and faith: humanitarian INGOs, local faith actors, and religious literacy
Paper presenter(s) will be presenting	In-Person / Online

Abstract

There are numerous advantages for local faith communities to be first responders during emergencies. They are intimately familiar with their communities' contexts. They know those who are most vulnerable. They also speak the local language. They know the most common disasters that occur in their midst, and they have most probably survived them in the past. Most importantly, local congregations have assets and people to mobilize for a response, including mandates for compassionate service and spiritual support for those in crisis. However, they need to receive up-to-date knowledge and skills on the core humanitarian standards, disaster preparedness, community resilience and inclusive approaches. The Project for Capacity Building on Humanitarian Initiatives in Capiz trained more than 250 pastors and congregational leaders that ultimately composed a provincial network of faith clusters representing 17 municipalities. The clusters were trained to be credible partners to local government, to communicate needs to the outside world through a web-based platform, and to act as a distribution network for aid coming from outside their communities. Lessons learned and emerging best practices on capacity building for local faith actors in the Philippines will be presented and discussed.

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