The SDC's 'comprehensive approach' in Haiti – joining forces for sustainability

The generally accepted view is that humanitarian actors operate in the aftermath of a natural disaster or during an armed conflict, distributing relief supplies and helping to rehabilitate the damaged environment. Their place is then taken by 'development cooperation' programmes, if the situation allows.

In Haiti, however, the SDC has been trying something different, by deploying specialists of humanitarian aid and development cooperation simultaneously. Furthermore, since the earthquake of 2010, all SDC staff have been working in close collaboration. The idea can be summed up in two words: comprehensive approach.

Synergies and complementarities

"Put simply, it means that humanitarian aid and longer-term cooperation look for synergies and complementarities", explains Corinne Conti, Humanitarian Aid's Haiti programme officer. The SDC's deputy head in Port-au-Prince, Bernard Zaugg, talks of the need to "decompartmentalise perspectives and shake up habits".

Implementing this comprehensive approach on a day-to-day basis is not without its challenges. Stakeholders need to be flexible. New mindsets have to be adopted. Rather than one-off projects, Humanitarian Aid has to think about its action in broader terms aimed at achieving a truly structural impact. For their part, cooperation and development programmes must incorporate and facilitate the work of humanitarian staff. This coordination of efforts is vital to ensuring the sustainability of projects in a country such as Haiti, with fragile institutions and a high risk of natural hazards.

Standard designs for schools

Two examples illustrate the added value of the comprehensive approach adopted by the SDC in Haiti. Firstly, the success of the school rebuilding programme following the completion of the post-earthquake emergency phase. "From the outset, the idea was that Swiss Humanitarian Aid experts should not only rehabilitate school buildings but also strengthen national capacities to build structures capable of withstanding natural hazards," Bernard Zaugg explains.

When getting in touch with the Haitian national education ministry and its main donor, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), members of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) were able to use the expertise and contacts previously acquired by their bilateral cooperation colleagues within the SDC. "The IDB had never been a Humanitarian Aid partner before, but it became one thanks to our comprehensive approach", says Gardy Letang, national humanitarian programme manager at the SDC's office in Port-au-Prince. Furthermore, the incorporation of the office into the Swiss embassy in Haiti in 2011 opened new doors: "Obviously, arranging a meeting with a minister is easier for an ambassador than for a project manager", Zaugg notes.

At the end of 2014, Switzerland can be proud not only of building nine schools (completed or under construction) but also of having helped to develop three sustainable construction blueprints for schools. These were adopted by the Haitian government as binding standards in April 2014. The Inter-American Development Bank has also incorporated them into its practices. According to SDC calculations, between CHF 15,000 and 40,000 in engineering costs can be saved for each of the 60 schools earmarked for reconstruction by the IDB using the 'Swiss' blueprints and more than USD 300,000 for each physical construction. The economies of scale could be greater still, with an estimated 1,000 schools in the country needing rehabilitation, according to the Haitian authorities.

Drinking water and sanitation

Another fruitful collaboration within the SDC concerns the water and sanitation sector. The fact that the Swiss cooperation office in Haiti has made the supply of drinking water to the population a priority in its 2014-2017 strategy is partly a result of the work done by SHA experts in 2010.

When a cholera epidemic broke out in the centre of Haiti eight months after the earthquake, the Haitian authorities asked Swiss Humanitarian Aid to strengthen drinking water treatment and monitoring mechanisms in the worst-hit areas and to train local technicians. The reliability and professionalism of the SHA's engineers were highly appreciated. These positive experiences confirmed the expertise of Swiss cooperation in this sector (the SDC has been funding a Helvetas-run drinking water project since 1998).

In 2012, the Haitian government and the SDC agreed to arrange Humanitarian Aid's involvement on a longer-term footing. The SDC was asked to help upgrade the national system for supplying drinking water to the population. So far, 11 analysis laboratories have been established and 48 water supply systems fitted with chlorination equipment, benefitting some 200,000 users. At a strategic level, the SDC has helped the National Directorate for Water and Sanitation (DINEPA) to draw up a new national technical master plan.

Crucially, the comprehensive approach advocated by the SDC in Haiti aligns with the partner country's own vision. "It's always been clear to us that, aside from emergencies, the humanitarian aid given by donors should be geared towards the institutionalisation of reforms", says Lesly Dumont, head of DINEPA's strategy unit.

Functional and sustainable services

As with school reconstruction, the SDC's overall objective in the area of water and sanitation is to strengthen the state so that it can provide basic services to the poorest people. However, in Haiti it is difficult to guarantee functional and sustainable public services without considering the risks of natural disasters in conjunction with the context of institutional fragility.

In spring 2014, SHA experts launched a disaster risk reduction project aimed at further embedding the principle of preventive as well as reactive humanitarian aid: "One of the priorities is to strengthen local governance in the area of risk management," explains Gardy Letang. What's more, involving the population in public action has the knock-on effect of consolidating the rule of law. As well as promoting sustainable development in Haiti, the joint and coordinated action of Humanitarian Aid and South Cooperation Department allows SDC projects to be mutually reinforcing.