Engaging with Access Working Groups: Good Practices and Opportunities

The virtual event aims to better familiarize the audience with the role of the Humanitarian Access Working Groups.   Jointly with OCHA, UNHCR and two Senior protection cluster coordinators, it further explores opportunities and good practices on how an enhanced collaboration would enable the very tackling challenges to full and unimpeded humanitarian access which is a fundamental prerequisite to effective protection of people affected by conflict.

OCHA and UNHCR panellists will be joined by Dr Ashley Jackson, the co-founder and co-director of the Centre on Armed Groups whose presentation would aim at providing examples of some developments since her contribution to the 2017 study 'Presence & Proximity to stay and deliver, five years on’’.  A particular focus will be devoted to her research finding according to which a direct link exists between the lack of proximity and the lack of attention to protection concerns. Dr Ashley will highlight innovative and effective approaches on how to enhance the protective benefits of proximity and the protection risks and concerns when presence is poorly understood and/or generally precluded by the dominance of remote approaches.