The launching of the fourth edition of the Sphere Manual in Salta, Argentina, was attended by representatives of the International Fraternidade (FIHF)
A small Venezuelan refugee child in Roraima, an elder whose house was destroyed by an earthquake in Asia, a woman who abandons all that she owns in Syria, and a young victim of a dam breaking of a mining company in Brazil are all separated by geographic miles and cultures, but have something in common: the right to a life of dignity.
It is estimated that in 2016 more than 125 million people were in need of humanitarian aid and more than 60 million people were forced to leave their homes.
In a search for solutions, the United Nations (UN) established Objectives for Sustainable Development, and through the World Humanitarian Summit, proposed an “Agenda for Humanity.”
In this scenario, humanitarian response plays an essential role in the arduous task of giving the vulnerable human population not only the right to live well, but also to influence and direct decision-making.
Sphere: a response
Created in 1997 by the International Movement of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent and other non-governmental organizations, the main objective of the Sphere project is to improve the quality of humanitarian responses.
To this end, it offers its support to people involved in the planning, management and/or execution of humanitarian work, including collaborators and volunteers from local, national and international humanitarian organizations.
The project encompasses more than 450 organizations present in about 65 countries, and acts through networks of representatives.
The program operates based on two principles:
1. The people affected by disasters or conflicts have the right to a life of dignity and therefore, to receive assistance.
2. All possible measures are to be taken to bring relief to the human suffering caused by those crises.
To establish the protocols that guide the project’s work, the Sphere produced a publication twenty years ago, the fourth edition of which was released in 2018.
Sphere Manual
The Sphere Manual is a publication of more than 500 pages, divided into four core chapters – where the essence and the commitments of the Sphere are specified – and four technical chapters that serve as a guide for those involved in humanitarian projects, as well as a consulting source for governors, civilians, the military, and the private sector for joint work among different sectors of society in a search for a just and dignified society.
At this time, the Sphere Manual is one of the humanitarian resources most consulted in the world.
The 4th Edition of the Sphere Manual coincides with the 20-year anniversary of the guide. Around 190 organizations participated in the preparation of the updated publication, and during the process, more than 1,400 people participated in 60 events organized by the project in 40 countries.
In November, seven representatives of Fraternidade – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF) participated in the launching of the edition in the city of Salta, in Argentina.
The event marked the beginning of an approach among Argentine organizations in the preparation of trainers for the manual.
“The reading of the manual is like the beginning of a new stage where everything is still to be discovered,” affirmed the coordinator of the Salta Light-Network and one of the representatives of Fraternidade in the event, Claudia del Castillo.
The Fraternidade – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF) is active in 18 countries and, up to 2019, carried out 23 national and international humanitarian missions, both permanent and temporary.
