SRK bedöms av Sida ha god kapacitet, kompetens och förankring för att genomföra den verksamhet som SRK söker stöd för. Ett tydligt mervärde vad gäller SRK är att organisationen är del av Röda kors- och Röda halvmånerörelsen som består av ett omfattande nätverk som inkluderar ICRC, IFRC och över 190 nationella Röda kors och Röda halvmåneföreningar och 15 miljoner volontärer på plats världen över. SRK kommer att stärka nationella föreningars kapacitet att leverera en snabbt och relevant humanitär respons samt att arbeta med katastrofriskreducering. SRK kommer också att bidra till en koordinerad och effektiv rörelse som möjliggör projekt med hög kvalitet och i linje med internationella standarder. De tio specifika kontexterna som täcks av SRK:s ansökan är Niger, Sydsudan, Bangladesh, DPRK, Irak, Libanon, Palestina, Syrien, Centralamerika och Colombia/ Venezuela. Stödet gäller främst fyra sektorer: vatten och sanitet; hälsa; familjeåterförening och skydd samt katastrofriskreducering. Fokus i ansökningarna för de olika landkontexterna syftar till att bidra med tidskritiskt relevant humanitärt stöd för att rädda liv och lindra nöd, vilket är i linje med Sidas humanitära strategi. Insatserna bidrar också till ökad resiliens och värdighet genom att den nationella föreningarna, volontärer och lokala strukturer stärks för att säkra hållbarhet och kvalitet i insatserna.

The aim of the projects is to provide timely and relevant support to people in situations of acute crisis and to strengthen the resilience of people and communities in vulnerable situations to better prepare for, cope with and recover from crises. Sida's analysis is that SRC has the capacity and competence to implement the activities listed in the application. SRC's added value is the large network of over 190 national societies and over 15 million volunteers all over the world. SRC will strengthen the capacity of the national societies to deliver a rapid and relevant humanitarian assistance and also to work on Disaster Risk Reduction. SRC also aims at supporting the National Society partners to contribute to a stronger and more effective International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (RCRC) Movement. The proposal covers projects in 10 contexts including: Niger, South Sudan, Bangladesh, DPRK, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Northern Triangle and Venezuela/Colombia. This support is mainly covering four sectors: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH); health; Restoring Family Links (RFL) and protection; Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). The focus is on saving lives through a relevant humanitarian assistance, in line with Sida’s humanitarian strategy 2021-2025, part of the projects also aims at increasing resilience and dignity through strengthening the national society, volunteers and local structures to ensure sustainability and quality throughout the project cycle.

Sida's Humanitarian Unit has prioritized funding allocations on the basis of most severe humanitarian needs and of the ability of its strategic partners to address them efficiently. The prioritized support will be in line with the Humanitarian Response Plans (HRP) and Refugee Response Plans (RRP), coordinated by the UN, and the ICRC operational appeals where applicable. OCHA's Global Humanitarian Overview 2024 indicates another year of significant humanitarian relief requirements, with 300 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in 72 countries. The estimated cost of the global humanitarian response going into 2024 is US$46.4 billion, a decrease of five billion compared to the beginning of 2023. However, this is not an indication of the humanitarian situation improving on a global level, rather that the humanitarian system has partly improved in prioritizing the most severe humanitarian needs, and that prioritization in general is needed in light of the decreasing global funding for humanitarian assistance. In 2024, Sida humanitarian unit will be prioritizing 30 crises worldwide and the Swedish Red Cross has been selected as one of the best placed actors in four crises. The Swedish Red Cross' objectives are in line with the strategy for Sweden's Humanitarian Assistance through Sida (2021-2025). The contribution is relevant for multiple objectives in the strategy. SRC has been assessed by Sida´s Humanitarian Unit to have strong capacity and competencies to respond to humanitarian crises. SRC is part of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (the Movement), which consists of an extensive network that includes the ICRC, IFRC and over 190 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and 13 million volunteers worldwide. Staff and volunteers within the movement work at the global as well as local level, often in areas where no other actors can reach. The movement's volunteers constitute a unique platform that enables humanitarian access, local ownership, knowledge and understanding of the contexts in which projects are implemented. SRC has a role in strengthening the resilience of vulnerable societies and people in crises, which is done by supporting the competence of the National Societies, as well as the affected communities, through disaster risk reduction and community-based response. SRC also adds value within the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement through its collaboration with National Societies where it aims to strengthens humanitarian values, humanitarian principles and Swedish priorities (e.g. integration of protection) within the entire movement. For 2024, Sida will support the following projects through SRC: Annual Projects: - Palestine The conflict is one of the worlds most complex and longest protracted humanitarian crises. The humanitarian needs have primarily been driven by the long term Israeli occupation, persistent blockade of Gaza, internal Palestinian political divisions, and repeated hostilities between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups. The man-made protracted protection crisis is spurred by violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. Since 7 October 2023, following the attack of Hamas, the situation in Gaza has changed dramatically and is also directly affecting the West Bank. SRC's focus on emergency health care, protection, psychosocial well-being, WASH-access to hygiene kits and provide targeted support to particularly vulnerable individuals among for example the previously and new injured in Gaza. Swedish Red Cross is a strong partner for PRCS, which is one of the strongest operational actors with the ability to work inside Gaza. Alongside UNRWA, PRCS is facilitating all humanitarian assistance entering Gaza and is one of the very few actors with capacity to reach northern parts of Gaza. As instructed by the Swedish government, Sida has carried out an in-depth review of its aid to Palestine to ascertain that no Swedish aid has financially supported terrorist activities, or actors that support or refrain from condemning such activities, and that humanitarian partners receiving Swedish funding adhere to the humanitarian principles. The review of the Swedish Red Cross operations in Palestine included: An external review of the organizations internal controls and routines which covered: forwarding of funds to implementing partners; ensuring that aid reaches intended beneficiaries; and adhering to the humanitarian principle of impartiality. An external review of the organizations and its implementing partners external communication. A screening of the organization and its implementing partners against the EU sanctions list. The external review of the Swedish Red Cross internal controls and routines found low risks or weaknesses which were assessed to have a limited impact on the internal control environment (the lowest risk category). The review of external communications and the screening against the EU sanctions list yielded no observations that require action from Sida. Multi-year projects: New Multi-year project - Lebanon SRC's overall approach of the project is to target both Syrian refugee households and vulnerable Lebanese communities through ensuring access to safe water and waste management, as well as improving access to health care services. In particular, the project focuses on reducing the spread of water borne diseases, improving the capacity of primary health care clinics, and importantly, to reduce tensions within and across communities, by improving access to basic services for all. Green response is furthermore an important feature of the project. The project will be implemented by the Lebanese Red Cross, who is a crucial humanitarian actor in the country, well trusted and established. The two-year funding commitment will allow stability and predictability for SRC and in turn LRC, which is important in a protracted humanitarian crisis such as Lebanon, and supportive of a good partnership between SRC and LRC. Multi-year project - top ups - South Sudan SRC has an ongoing multi-year grant from Sida aimed at addressing humanitarian needs and enhancing vulnerable communities ability to cope with disaster and crises through the provision of livelihood support, health, first aid and psychosocial support (PSS), SGBV, and (emergency) WASH services in Upper Nile state (Malakal/Kodok and Maiwut) through the local branches of the South Sudan Red Cross Society. Multi-year project - Syria SRC has a three-year project 2023-2025 aiming to address a portion of the health needs of the vulnerable Syrian population, providing primary health care and comprehensive mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services through the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC). SRC will also support clinics and community centres run by the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS). Due to their already vulnerable status, the humanitarian crisis in Syria has disproportionately affected the Palestinian communities. The longer term funding to SRC enhances sustainability, community engagement and strengthening of Protection, Gender and Inclusion in SRC´s programmes. Global Response: - Rapid Response Mechanism - DREF - ICRC Delegates - Response Staff and Delegate Deployments Method- and capacity-building support: - Community-driven Green Response in Emergencies Continuation of a project that started in 2023. This project aims to develop an approach for Community-Driven Green Response in emergency responses, which will be field tested in Bangladesh and Lebanon. This approach aims to both help communities identify and respond to environmental hazards, in addition to recognising their rights to demand environmentally friendly responses from duty bearers. Various techniques will be used in forming the approach, such as an initial desk study, literature review of existing materials, deep interviews, innovation labs and expert-informed exploratory workshops. There is the intention to engage with the private sector to explore options for innovative delivery of the materials included in the approach, for example gamified approaches to behavioural change, or future scenario planning to ensure the longevity of the green response approach. The projects outcome is to develop an approach for Community-Driven Green Response in emergency response settings, based on best practices from the field. - Strengthening Needs Analysis and Assessment Through this project, the IFRC and SRC aim to strengthen humanitarian needs assessments and analysis in terms of availability and quality, as well as their use for IFRC and National Society decision-making in emergencies. To properly add value in the complex area of improved needs analysis and assessment for better decision-making, this project extends over two years. The work will aim to support on three separate but linked levels: 1) the IFRC in their role as facilitators; 2) National Societies as national and local actors; and 3) SRC as a partner to those groups. This project is a collaboration between SRC and IFRC, focusing on needs analysis and assessment, part of a larger engagement on improving Information Management with already approved funding from USAID.