DIHAD is the main such event taking place in the Gulf and Middle East regions, seeking to bring together humanitarian actors, influencers and decisions makers from the realms of governments, charities, NGOs, academia, donors, and the multilateral aid system to focus on topics relevant to the region.
In 2019, the heading was People on the Move, a very pertinent topic considering the number of humanitarian crises taking place in the region, forcing people to flee and uproot their livelihoods.
DIHAD 2019 was the first time RedR Australia attended, and Sune was invited to speak at the pre-DIHAD meeting, an event organized by OCHA for humanitarian partners across the MENA and Gulf region, to both be introduced to the multilateral humanitarian system, and to discuss more technical aspects of the annual theme, namely how to better assist people on the move.
The pre-DIHAD event served as a platform for RedR Australia to elaborate on the work we do, including in supporting the UN system and governments with the rapid deployment of high calibre technical experts, and on the support we provide in capacity supplementation and trainings.
Given the need for experienced staff, often at short notice when civilians under threat decide to flee their homes, RedR provides a crucial expertise to help 11 UN agencies obtain much-needed surge capacity.
The presentation and subsequent discussions at the pre-DIHAD event introduced RedR’s work to a wider range of humanitarian actors, and continued to build our extensive network in the humanitarian community.
The remainder of the DIHAD conference served as a networking opportunity for RedR, using the platform given at the pre-DIHAD event, to meet new partners and explore opportunities for collaboration across a very vibrant humanitarian and charity community in both MENA and the Arabian Peninsula.
It was a worthwhile opportunity containing many new introductions at all levels, national and international, and RedR Australia will continue to build on these new connections in the years to come.
