ANNUAL REPORT 1 October 2019 – 30 September 2020 The Humanitarian and Stabilisation Operations Team (HSOT), implemented by Palladium, provides the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Stabilisation Unit (SU) with capacity and specialist expertise for effective UK response to sudden-onset WHAT IS disasters, protracted crises and complex emergencies. The team also supports other UK government departments in their work with fragile and conflict-affected states. We are a team of over 70 dedicated core HSOT? staff working closely with the FCDO and the SU in London with a procurement and logistics team located at our warehouse in Kemble, Gloucestershire. Our response support services are designed to help manage rapid-onset humanitarian disasters, and to meet increased needs in protracted humanitarian crises and conflict- affected states around the world through a five-year programme. Our primary objective is to ensure that the UK government has the right people in the right place at the right time to meet the needs of affected people. 2 S BILI ATIO TA N OUR S CAPABILITIES We are experienced in managing the full Emergency Specialist Deployment range of operational response services Response Advice & Recovery in humanitarian emergencies at scale. Management of Experts Stabilisation Deployment Security Unit Support & Recovery Advice of Experts RE-CRISIS P Information Procurement Lesson Management & Logistics Learning C E RI S Specialist Deployment SIS ON Advice & Recovery Preparedness Horizon Specialist RESP of Experts Scanning & Advice Early Warning Information Procurement Management & Logistics Capacity Procurement P Building & Logistics R IS O S TR RI ACTED C 3 OUR STORY HSOT started in November 2017. In the last 3 years we have supported the Deliver In With a value of over Responding to UK Government to: 832projects 130countries £76m major36 crises Managing Procuring over 1,830 369,037 specialist deployments items 4 OUR NETWORK 5 CONTENTS 6 FROM THE LEADERSHIP TEAM MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR Palladium’s Humanitarian and continuity plan to enable continued delivery across the programme, and Stabilisation Operations Team tighter coordination between the has completed the third year programme team and our clients in DFID of implementing the and the SU. At the time of writing, the full impact of the merger of DFID with the Humanitarian Emergency Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Response Operations and is still unfolding and will present Stabilisation Programme opportunities and challenges for the forward trajectory of the programme. (HEROS), providing support to The report provides a compelling picture the UK Government in pursuit of how HSOT has delivered significant of its policy priorities as laid impact against Government-articulated out in the then-Department for humanitarian and stabilisation priorities and contractual requirements, as well as International Development’s how we have flexed in line with emerging (DFID) 2017 Humanitarian needs, risks and opportunities; built on Reform Policy. lessons learned in previous years in order to deliver a professional, efficient, effective Programme implementation is led by and world-class set of services while four operational teams: the Humanitarian demonstrating solid value for money. Emergency Response Team; the As we look to the future and gain a Operations Team; the Procurement and better understanding of the implications Logistics Team; and the Stabilisation Unit of the far-reaching consequences of the Support Team. events of 2020, Palladium and the This report tells the story of our work over programme team are enthusiastic to the last 12 months, a period of significant continue and enhance support to the challenge and change. The onset of the British Government for the remainder of Novel Corona Virus (Covid-19) at the start the programme period and beyond. of 2020 required a rapid recalibration of operational priorities, the development Director: Oliver Hall and implementation of a business 7 FROM THE LEADERSHIP TEAM HUMANITARIAN OPERATIONS TEAM EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM Deputy Director: David Northfield This year the Operations Team managed Behind the scenes our team continues Deputy Director: Siobhan Parnell a diverse portfolio of humanitarian to organise and manage the welfare of A strengthened Early Warning and Risk projects, deploying technical experts to hundreds of staff and contractors, Alert system engaged a broader group of support FCDO country teams from providing pre-deployment training, stakeholders, creating a fuller picture of Albania to Zimbabwe and multiple crises medical clearance and security vetting emerging risk contexts and generating in between. As the world was gripped by to ensure the FCDO and the wider UK evidence-based analysis. This informs the Covid-19 pandemic, HSOT advisors Government have access to the experts FCDO decision-making, supports supported the UK Government to adapt it needs whenever and wherever they response operations and reaches an and respond to the challenge, working in are required. This is underpinned by a increasingly wide government audience. the field and in Whitehall as we recruited financial infrastructure that processes The newly established Emerging Risk new specialists in areas such as hundreds of thousands of transactions Advisory Group solidifies the engagement epidemiology and public health, while also accounting for millions of pounds of and utility of HSOT’s capability. expanding our core pool of humanitarian government expenditure, and our team advisers and information managers. is constantly working to improve and HSOT’s advisors provide high-calibre enhance our efficiency, transparency The Team supported FCDO engagement humanitarian expertise, field experience and value for money. and policy understanding, guiding FCDO with the United Nations (UN) through humanitarian response from early strategic both the UN Disaster Assessment and direction to adaptation, monitoring and Coordination mechanism and the learning, emphasising core policy priorities Standby Partnership, responding to and upholding UK commitments. humanitarian crises while strengthening Technical capability for safeguarding the international system. We also against sexual harassment, abuse and developed and deployed new sexual exploitation has ensured that we partnerships to provide niche skills, fulfil FCDO’s requirements and pursue our including disability and inclusion experts ambitious approach with practical action. and geographic information system Our technical expertise across (GIS) specialists. humanitarian sectors has benefited multiple UK responses. HSOT has increased FCDO capacity through rapid deployments, enhanced preparedness focus, exercises and training sessions, guidance contributions and the promotion of peer learning. 8 FROM THE LEADERSHIP TEAM PROCUREMENT AND STABILISATION UNIT LOGISTICS TEAM (SU) SUPPORT TEAM Deputy Director: Julian Neale Deputy Director: Mark Marshall Supply chain response activity provided Improvements were made in clear advice to the FCDO, leading to more sustaining deployees by implementing efficient utilisation of project resources robust welfare, medical and financial for the Covid-19 response and August support mechanisms. Centralising project 2020 support to Lebanon, as well as for management this year improved working the wider humanitarian community. relationships and enhanced the services and support offered to our deployees. A focus on the environment was operationalised in supply chain The team implemented a rapid risk-based preparedness and response supply chains assessment of all overseas personnel to through an amendment to the supply successfully mitigate Covid-19-related chain strategy, in addition to work on risks towards withdrawal or retention of reducing packaging and increasing personnel overseas, as well as a recycling and carbon offset measures. successful transition to remote working. A lessons learned and re-deployment Procurement continued to be transparent planning process ensured operational and fair with increasing emphasis on outputs were not affected when environmental and safeguarding re-deployment commenced. considerations. The team continues to provide traceability for goods in its care Palladium worked closely with SU and has developed blockchain based tools counterparts to better align working to extend traceability post-handover to practices and policies. The outcome of FCDO partners. this work was improved understanding, greater clarity over deliverables and improved operational activity. This improved clarity has paid dividends in output terms and has directly led to increased requests for a wider range of services in support of the SU’s work. 9 OUR GLOBAL REACH LEBANON SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC 12 tonnes PPE 37 tonnes relief items ALBANIA 22.5 tonnes NFIs (non-food items) BANGLADESH 19.8 tonnes oxygen generators FCDO and SU VANUATU Deployments 2 tonnes relief Humanitarian & Early items via DFAT Warning Risks Flagged Both of the above 10 PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS 11 BEIRUT PORT EXPLOSION On 4 August 2020, Procurement and logistics experts assessment which informed the assessed the Port of Beirut, identified Lebanon office decision to fund a a massive explosion supply chain routes and air charter Standby Partnership request for a devastated Beirut. About options, and procured personal safeguarding and accountability position 2,750 tonnes of ammonium protective equipment (PPE), ensuring in the UN Office for the Coordination of airside access, the handover