1. Preamble The assignment will cover humanitarian logistics operations in the international disaster relief system (IDRS) and the relevant actors and stakeholders involved within the system. It will also focus on the challenges of humanitarian logistics and how coordination and cooperation amongst humanitarian organisations can overcome these challenges and improve humanitarian operations within the international disaster relief system. 2. Introduction During the past decade there has been an increasing number of medium to high impact disasters that had catastrophic effects on countries. Due to these disasters there has been a growing need for humanitarian assistance and the humanitarian system has evolved into an industry with logistics being placed as an essential tool in relief operations. Humanitarian logistics is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient and cost effective flow of materials, funds, resources and related information from a point of origin to a point of consumption for the purpose of meeting the beneficiaries’ needs. Humanitarian logistics concentrates on organizing the delivery and warehousing of supplies during natural disasters, man-made disasters or complex emergencies to the affected area and people. The humanitarian system involves a wide variety of humanitarian organizations, all with different missions, mandates, and agendas. There is a wide variety of actors involved within the relief system and this has resulted in a series of challenges, including the need to increase resources towards humanitarian response and to improve operational effectiveness and efficiency. Implementation of logistics information systems and practicing coordination and cooperation amongst humanitarian... ... middle of paper ... ...ons involve working in frequently volatile environments characterised by a high degree of uncertainty. There are also a large number of challenges found in humanitarian logistics that hinder humanitarian response operations. The international disaster relief system consists of a large number of humanitarian organisations involved in disaster relief operations. Problems arise within the IDRS due to a lack of inter organisational cooperation among humanitarian organisations. The main problem is the inefficient utilisation and distribution of resources, funding, and logistics personnel. The only way to overcome these challenges and problems is to implement coordination and cooperation in humanitarian logistics and within and between humanitarian organisations involved in the IDRS, this will result in more efficient, cost effective and successful humanitarian operations
The proliferation of crises around the world has led to a prominent increase in the amount of humanitarian aid needed. Humanitarian aid work represents not only compassion, but commitment to support innocent populations that have experienced sudden or on-going tragedies. Some of these tragedies include: malnutrition, genocide, diseases, torture, poverty, war, natural disasters, government negligence, and unfortunately much more. There is no doubt that these tragedies are some of the world’s toughest problems to solve as they are often complex, multifaceted and require diligence and patience. For this reason, being a humanitarian aid worker is more than a profession, it is a lifestyle that requires a sharp distinction between one’s work and
Joint Publication 3.0 entitled Joint Operations, defines Joint Sustainment as the provision of logistics and personnel services necessary to maintain and prolong operations through mission accomplishment and redeployment of the force. Joint Publication 4-0 further states, “Effective joint logistics planning identify future requirements and proposes solutions; it requires joint logisticians to understand the commander’s intent and concept of operations (CONOPS).” Logisticians use seven principles in their planning at the strategic, operational, or tactical level of war to ensure operations are logistically supportable. These principles are responsiveness, simplicity, flexibility, economy, attainability,...
The National response plan outlines four key actions the disaster coordinator should take. They are gaining and maintaining situational awareness, activate and deploy key resources and capabilities, coordinating response actions and demobilizing. Throughout the response it is essential that responders have access to critical information. During the initial response effort the situation is will change rapidly. Situational awareness starts at the incident site. For this reason it is essential that decision makers have access to the right information at the right time. By establishing an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) all key responders are brought ...
There are many areas of the world where the most basic needs like clean drinking water, proper sanitation and medical care are just not available. When disaster strikes, the people living in these already disadvantaged areas are thrust into situations where death is almost always imminent. Reach Out WorldWide (“ROWW”) was started by a group of 6 men in California. They flew to Haiti and volunteered to help in whatever way they could after a massive earthquake devastated the country on January 12, 2010. While working in Haiti as medical aid volunteers, the group recognized the need for skilled people, supplies and urgency for a faster response when natural disasters strike.
Sapient: Modernizing Military Logistics: USMC case study, (n.d.) Sapient corporate website. Accessed 10 August 2005 at http://www.sapient.com/case/usmc.htm
The most important part of integrating anything into a plan is the logistics portion of that plan. What is
One of the most important aspects of having a strong and successful military is logistics. Without a strong supply corps, a military is not able to mobilize nor sustain their current operations. Sun Tzu says “the line between disorder and order lies in logistics.” Navy supply is a large operation, consisting of over 26,000 personnel. Navy supply’s sole objective is to provide “One-Touch-Supply” in which a single request can activate a global network. With “One-Touch-Supply” navy supply “is responsible for quality of life issues for our naval forces, including food service, postal services, Navy Exchanges, and movement of household goods”(globalsecurity).
NIMS provides a uniform nationwide basis and way for federal, state, tribal, and local governments, along with the public to work on preparedness, recovery, response and mitigation no matter what causes an event. With all organizations using the same application, effective and efficient responses are possible. Organizations will be able to arrive on the scene and be ready to assist and understand exactly what each group is doing and why. Protocols are set and it is known what equipment and personnel are available. With NIMS all groups are able to integrate und...
“Logistic is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, effective flow of goods storage of goods, services and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements”
The role of the ICRC since its inception has gradually shifted from just being a body tasked with providing relief in times of humanitarian strife to one of a body of immense si...
The key question here is, if internal wars cause unacceptable human suffering, should the international community develop collective mechanisms for preventing or alleviating it? 5. This essay will attempt to address such a question, by outlining the arguments for and against humanitarian intervention in the context of the Bosnian crisis of 1991. In light of the evidence, it will be proven that although humanitarian intervention does have flaws, it is a vital tool in alleviating the human suffering that so plagues contemporary society. The complex issue of humanitarian intervention is widely argued and inherently controversial.
Zanjirani F., Rezapour, S. & Kardar, L. (2011) Logistics operations and management concepts and models, 1st ed. London ; Elsevier.
Contrary to appearances that logistics and supply chain management are byproducts of the industrial era, the earliest recorded reference dates back to the 1830’s. In his book The Art of War, Napoleon Bonaparte staff officer Baron Antoine-Henri Jomini defines logistics by its value to the French military. (Rogers, 2004) Named after the French military title major général des logìs, De Jomini defines logistics responsibilities for establishing camps, supply lines, leading marches and strategic troop locations. (De Jomini, 1862, 1971) While De Jomini’s concept of logistics remains a vital to successful military strategy to this day, it wasn’t until the mid-20th century that logistics began to find true application in the academic and business worlds.
Coyle, J., Langley, C., Gibson, B., Novack, R. and Bardi, E. (2008).Supply Chain Management: A Logistics Perspective. 8th ed. Cengage Learning, p.366.