Supporting Local Ownership in Humanitarian Action

This paper is the result of the 18-month research project Raising the Bar: Enhancing transatlantic governance of disaster relief and preparedness. It argues that humanitarian aid agencies should include the notion of “local ownership” into their work because it is a crucial conditions to increase quality and accountability of humanitarian aid. Definitions of this principle in the international discourse is presented, followed by its different components. Next, implementation challenges are discussed, and finally recommendations are offered.