Rome, June 01 2018 Volume 2 Innovations at the World Food Programme Innovations at the World Food Programme Personal Experiences of World Food Programme Alumni Innovators The World Food Programme Alumni Network Published by: The World Food Programme Alumni Network https://wpfalumni.wfp.org Joseph Kaifala, Editor Innovations at the World Food Programme Personal Experiences of Alumni Innovators The World Food Programme Alumni Network Disclaimer The opinions expressed are those of the individual authors, and do not necessarily reflect those of the World Food Programme (WFP) or the WFP Alumni Network. Responsibility for the opinions expressed in this book rests solely with the authors. Publication of this book does not imply WFP or WFP Alumni Network endorsement of the opinions expressed. Copyright © 2018 WFP Alumni Network All rights reserved. Book and cover design, Joseph Kaifala Front cover image: School Feeding (Burundi), WFP/Hugh Rutherford Dedication To those who devote their lives to humanitarian service with the World Food Programme; to the resilience, courage and determination of those in the places they serve; to the mothers and children who are recipients of their nutritious food, and to the 65 million displaced people around the world. Foreword At the World Food Programme (WFP), innovation has been at our core from the very beginning. For decades, WFP’s undeterred focus on reaching people in need has driven us to constantly look for new approaches to food assistance in even the most precarious environments. This book tells that story. It shows in detail how, over the past four decades, creative minds at WFP have worked together on innovations in programmes, delivery systems, and even in back office processes to make WFP more efficient and effective. All of this to better serve those who need our help. We are recognized around the world and within the United Nations as a trailblazer. But we will never just rest on our laurels. We will continue to look for new approaches and use new technologies to reach more people in need. Just in the past few years alone: • We have tapped into new ways to asses needs and provide food assistance through mobile phone technology; • Unmanned aerial vehicles have become commonplace in our operations; • Our beneficiaries are taking advantage of digital cash-based transfer programmes allow people to buy what they need, when and where they need it • And WFP is even experimenting with cutting edge technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence to improve our operations. To nurture even more innovative thinking at WFP we created an in-house “Innovation Accelerator” in 2015. We based it on best practices from the world of startups, the corporate sector and leading social entrepreneurs. The Accelerator offers a risk-free environment to experiment with new approaches, access to State-of-the-Art innovation methodologies and external networks to take innovations from inspiration to implementation. I want to thank and congratulate my predecessors and former colleagues, especially those who have shared their experiences in this book. Thank you for creating an organisation that I am privileged to lead today – one with a “can-do” attitude that has innovation as part of its DNA. I would also like to thank the Alumni Network for putting this publication together, which I hope everyone who works with or cares about what WFP does will read. It proves what I like to say: WFP is the best of the best. Best wishes, David Beasley, Executive Director I Preface The World Food Programme (WFP) Alumni Network (AN) published the first volume in an Oral History series in 2017 on the personal experiences of Alumni in the Southern African Drought Emergencies from the 1960s to 2017. Twenty- two Alumni, including four Executive Directors and a Deputy Executive Director, contributed to the volume. The publication was released at an event during the Annual Session of the Executive Board and was shared with WFP management and leaders. Managers throughout the organisation, as well as members and observers of the Executive Board, appreciated the effort to share and preserve the experiences of WFP Alumni, and encouraged AN to continue with its Oral History series. Accordingly, the Steering Committee surveyed AN members on the topic for the second volume in the series, proposing three themes. The theme “Innovations at WFP” received the highest number of votes for 2017-2018. Innovations were important, as WFP successes could not have been achieved without efforts in the development and maintenance of systems to backstop operations on the ground. Other proposed themes will be considered for future volumes. This volume contains contributions from 18 Alumni on “Innovations at WFP.” We have tried to present the innovations in a rough chronological order, which provides a sense of the starting point for each innovation. Many of the later innovations became possible because of earlier ones. We are thankful to four former Executive Directors – Jim Ingram, Catherine Bertini, Josette Sheeran and Ertharin Cousin – for taking time to share their perspectives of what innovations occurred at WFP during their period of service. While Executive Director Ertharin Cousin (2012-2017) did not mention it herself, we cannot forget her role in: (a) linking staff with the governing body by supporting annual presentations by elected staff representatives to the Executive Board and (b) strongly supporting the establishment of the Alumni Network and facilitating its observer status at Executive Board meetings. Also, we cannot forget the innovation of partnerships with the private sector, including the “Walk the World” campaign that the former Executive Director Jim Morris (2002-2007) introduced at WFP. We are thankful to the current WFP Executive Director, David Beasley, for continuing to support the Alumni Network, and providing a Foreword for this volume. This volume could not have been possible without contributions from Alumni who cared to share their respective stories. I hope these experiences and perspectives will be of some use to succeeding management and staff of WFP. I would like to acknowledge the contributions of other members of the Editorial Panel—Angela Van Rynbach and Gretchen Bloom in the USA, Peggy Nelson and Mohamed Saleheen in Rome. I would also like to thank our able editor, Joseph Kaifala, who undertook to edit this second volume as well as the first one because of the attraction he feels towards WFP as an important organisation committed to a goal worth his time. Suresh R. Sharma President, Steering Committee, WFP Alumni Network II Introduction When “innovation” is used in the media these days, most people do not think of humanitarian organisations such as the World Food Programme (WFP). Our thoughts are usually drawn to the app-producing, Silicon Valley tech communities. But long before we were excited by mobile phones and new apps, individual or group innovations (within or outside organisations) have been transforming the way we live our lives. In fact, one of the original definitions of “innovation” is “revolution,” a change in the order of things. What “innovation” truly means is the establishment of a new idea or an improvement on an old one. The last part of this definition is important because nowadays talks of “innovation” focus only on the establishment of new ideas and not on improvements on old ones. In contrast, WFP has become one of the world’s leading humanitarian organisations because of its amenability to “innovation” both as the creation of new ideas and an improvement on old approaches—with a clear vision on the most cutting-edge approach to serving poor and hungry people around the world. However, an organisation is only as innovative as its employees, and that requires the creation of a conducive work environment where workers can bring bold new approaches to their job. WFP has always, whether formally or informally, encouraged bold new ideas or improvements on the delivery of services. An organisation cannot obtain a reputation of being one of the greatest humanitarian organisations by remaining stagnant and old fashioned. As time passes, conditions change, and new crises occur, WFP has innovated to tackle new challenges - learning from previous experiences in order to provide efficient services. It was this drive to create or make better that drove various WFP Executive Directors to pursue or support ideas that placed the organisation in a better stead for humanitarian services. James Ingram fought rigorously for the reconstitution of WFP from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), Catherine Bertini supported the creation of Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM) and pursued gender equality through Commitments to Women, Josette Sheeran introduced Cash for Food, thereby promoting locally produced food, which beneficiaries can purchase using WFP cash/voucher, and Ertharin Cousin crowned it all by supporting the establishment of a WFP Innovations Lab for creating and improving ideas. Perhaps these innovations by WFP workers will never be listed on the Forbes citation of groundbreaking innovations, but to those caught in dire humanitarian circumstances, and who receive better services as a result of innovations at WFP, these innovators deserve the greatest honour—that of lifesavers. In this volume are some of the innovations that have made WFP one of the world’s leading humanitarian organisations. Unfortunately, though, the world is still confronted by challenging humanitarian crises and millions of people need feeding. More innovations are needed to deal squarely with these humanitarian III crises. This is a challenge for the WFP employees who bear the baton of service to poor and hungry people around the world. Finally, let me take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all WFP photographers, especially Rein Skullerud, who has been very helpful towards the publication of these volumes. Joseph Kaifala Editor IV TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword .................................................................................................