Measuring Separation in Emergencies: Haiti following Hurricane Matthew

The Measuring Separation in Emergencies (MSiE) project is an interagency initiative funded by the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) and is coordinated by Save the Children in partnership with Columbia University.

The overall aim of the MSiE project is to strengthen emergency response programmes for unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) through the development of practical, field-tested tools to enhance the assessment of the scale and nature of separation in emergencies. Three methods for measuring separation in emergencies are currently being explored:

1. Projection method
2. Population-based estimation method
3. Community-based surveillance method

The first report and its corresponding summary focus primarily on the population-based estimation approach, developed by Columbia University, and the field-testing of this approach in the Sud Department of Haiti from February to March 2017. The Save the Children International office in Haiti hosted the pilot research.

The second report focus on the residential care approach, developed by Columbia University, and field-tested in Les Cayes in April 2017. The pilot was undertaken immediately following the field-testing of the population-based estimation, which was carried out from February to March. Multiple data collection methodologies to gather evidence on the number and characteristics of children moving into residential care facilities following Hurricane Matthew were used.