Overview
Sudan CHF TOR - Terms of Reference
The Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund (CHF) is a pooled funding mechanism established in 2005 for humanitarian activities in Sudan. Under the overall authority of the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC), the Sudan CHF is intended to give the HC greater ability to target funds to the most critical humanitarian needs, encourage early donor contributions and enable a rapid response to unforeseen circumstances. A similar mechanism exists in the Democratic Republic of Congo (See the DRC Pooled Fund's Overview).
Only humanitarian projects included in the UN and Partners Work Plan for Sudan (the Work Plan) are eligible for CHF funding. The Work Plan outlines the annual strategic and operational plan for the UN and partners' assistance in Sudan and is developed in consultation with national, regional and local authorities. It is divided into seven planning regions and one national programme, each covering up to twelve sectors with four cross cutting issues that all sectors are expected to integrate into their programming. In 2010, 143 UN and Partner Agencies participated in the 2010 Work Plan which includes 410 projects requiring a total of US$1.9 billion to conduct critical humanitarian and early recovery activities for the year.
Both the Work Plan and the Sudan CHF help advance humanitarian aid reforms as proposed in the Secretary-General's report, In Larger Freedom (2005), such as strengthened response capacity, more predictable and timely funding to organizations, strengthened coordination, as well as donors' endorsement of Good Humanitarian Donorship (GHD) principles.
This website is not the official Sudan CHF website, but the UNDP Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office information website on the Sudan CHF. To visit the official Sudan CHF website, click here.
The Sudan CHF is administered by the Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office (MPTF Office) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in accordance with its financial regulations and rules.
EXPLANATORY NOTE! As contributions of several donors are received at the end of the calendar year to ensure predictability of funding ahead of the Humanitarian Planning Exercise for the following year, please note that generally October through December contributions are available for programming in the following year. For some donors this end year contributions may also constitute contributions of the following year.
Assistance Strategy
The objectives of the Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund (CHF) is to support the timely allocation and disbursement of donor resources to the most critical humanitarian needs under the overall oversight and coordination of the Humanitarian Coordinator. It is only used for projects classified as "humanitarian" under the Work Plan.
The Sudan CHF is intended to improve humanitarian outcomes by providing committed funds earlier than under previous arrangements; strengthening the planning and coordination process; tying the funding allocation to the Work Plan; broadening participation in the Work Plan; channelling funds towards the most urgent needs; and by ensuring that funds are available for rapid responses to unforeseen circumstances. To achieve these objectives, the CHF has been designed to accommodate the following principles:
- The CHF should operate as a single fund;
- Donors should make commitments and transfer money to the CHF as early as possible;
- The CHF should use the Work Plan as its primary allocation tool;
- Allocation and disbursement procedures should be rapid and transparent;
- There should be no overall additional reporting burden on recipients;
- The CHF should maintain a reserve for rapid response to unforeseen circumstances;
- The operation of The CHF should meet acceptable fiduciary standards.
The Humanitarian Coordinator is responsible for the allocation of funds based on priority needs and absorptive capacities. In allocating funding, the Humanitarian Coordinator may request advice from the Advisory Group, comprising representatives of donors, the UN, NGOs and others as deemed necessary. The Advisory Group will ensure that the activities funded under the Sudan CHF are harmonized with those funded bilaterally by the donors. The Humanitarian Coordinator is also supported by the Administrative Agent (AA), a Technical Support Unit, and a Monitoring and Evaluation Unit.
There are two mechanisms for allocating funds:
- A standard allocation mechanism, used for allocating the bulk of the Sudan CHF resources and ensuring early funding for priority projects.
- A rapid onset mechanism, used in the event of unforeseen needs or emergency circumstances. No more than 10% of committed funds is kept aside for the Rapid Response Reserve.
To support uniform and consolidated financial reporting, the Sudan CHF is administered by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in accordance with its financial regulations and rules. UNDP serves as the Administrative Agent (AA) on behalf of the Participating UN Organizations. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) serves as the CHF technical unit and is responsible for managing the allocation process in Sudan. For participating NGOs, funds are channelled through UNDP performing an additional oversight function as a Participating UN Organization.
Governance
Humanitarian Coordinator
The overall management of the Sudan CHF activities will be led and coordinated by the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC). According to the Sudan CHF Terms of Reference, the HC is responsible for:
- Mobilizing resources;
- Defining the level of the Rapid Response Reserve and allocating CHF resources according to agreed procedures;
- Allocating in particular Sudan CHF resources to IOM and NGO partners involved in the Work Plan through UNDP, in line with the allocation process and in keeping with UNDP's regulations and rules;
- Approving allocations and disbursements;
- Reporting to donors in accordance with Work Plan requirements and the Sudan CHF Terms of Reference;
- Managing the process of monitoring and evaluation the impact and effectiveness of Work Plan delivery;
- Chairing the Advisory Group.
In his/her role the HC is supported by a Technical Support Unit, a Monitoring and Evaluation Unit and the Administrative Agent.
Advisory Group
The Sudan CHF Advisory Group has been formed to represent the views of the Donors, the UN Country Team (UNCT) and the NGO community. The Advisory Group consist of the HC (as Chair); local representatives of the three largest donors to the Sudan CHF; UN Country Team representatives, including the Participating UN Organizations; and one representative of the NGO community. The Chair can invite additional donors, UNCT, NGO members and any other person deemed necessary for improving discussion and recommendations by the Advisory Group.
The Advisory Board is responsible for:
- If requested by the HC, advising him/her on the most appropriate allocation of resources, based on needs, priorities, and absorptive capacities;
- Reviewing policy guidelines and regional and project allocation made by the HC at various points in the consultative Work Plan;
- Reviewing the reports submitted by the Administrative Agent and the HC;
- Reviewing the operational activities of the CHF itself, especially at the middle and end of the Work Plan cycle;
- Ensuring that the activities funded under the CHF are harmonized with those funded bilaterally by the Donors;
- Advising on any issue related to the operations of the CHF.
Administrative Agent
The UNDP serves as the Administrative Agent (AA) and is responsible for concluding Standard Administrative Arrangement (SAA) with donors and Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Participating UN Organizations. It receives, administers and manages contributions from Donors. It disburses these funds to the Participating UN Organizations in accordance with the decisions of the HC. The AA also maintains a Rapid Response Reserve as directed by the HC. Finally, the AA prepares and submits financial reports on the Sudan CHF account to the HC, each donor that has contributed to the CHF, as well as the Advisory Group.
CHF Technical Unit
The Humanitarian Coordinator is supported by a CHF Technical Unit managed by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). This unit is responsible for programmatic aspects associated with the management of the Sudan CHF, including the facilitation of the CHF allocation process.
Decision-Making Process
Elegibility
Only humanitarian projects falling within the framework of the UN and Partners Work Plan for Sudan (the Work Plan) are eligible for Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund (CHF) funding.
Proposal Submission
The Humanitarian Coordinator (HC) issues allocation policy paper to steer the allocation process, based on available humanitarian information, as well as humanitarian needs. Participating UN Organizations, Non-UN Participating Organizations such as the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and their partners are requested to submit developed project proposals for projects selected for Sudan CHF funding.
Proposal Review & Approval Process
The primary project technical review function is done through the Work Plan planning process.
Since February 2010, the HC has adopted a revised CHF standard allocation model to provide more transparency, guidance and accountability in the selection process by introducing two regional envelopes (north and south) and specifying the selection criteria. The revised model also aims to shorten the period between the project review and final allocation.
Once the HC issues the allocation policy paper, consultations occur within sector coordination groups to recommend sector priorities for Sudan CHF allocations, in line with the priorities outlined in the Work Plan. A list of priority projects is then endorsed by each sector group and submitted to the HC for approval. Under exceptional circumstances, the HC may exclude certain projects and add others in order to further the objectives of the overall humanitarian programme and achieve an improved balance.
The HC then informs the recipient organizations of the allocation decision. S/he instructs the Administrative Agent (AA) of the CHF to transfer funds to the relevant organizations. Disbursements to Participating UN Organizations and Non-UN Participating Organizations such as IOM are made within three (3) to five (5) business days of receipt of the appropriate documentation signed by both the HC and the Participating UN Organization and the Non-UN Participating Organizations, depending on the availability of donor funds.
Disbursements to NGOs involved in the Work Plan are made through UNDP performing an additional oversight function as a Participating UN Organization (see CHF TOR).
