Humanitarian/development organisations have a duty of care to take all reasonable measures to protect their staff from foreseeable risks, including those that emerge due a staff member’s personal profile. Part of organisations’ duty of care obligations is to ensure that staff members are informed of the risks they are exposed to, prior to, and throughout their work. Security and duty of care obligations need to be balanced with respecting employees’ rights to privacy, equality and non-discrimination.
One way to balance duty of care obligations with non-discrimination is to share information about the risks faced by all profiles with all staff (i.e. in security rules, security briefings, intranet etc.) This allows staff to access information about risks associated with their personal profile, without having to disclose personal information. The following resources and information can be shared with staff within your organisation to assist them in better assessing the profile-specific risks they may face in their context.
Person-Centred Approach to SRM Resources
This 2018 GISF research paper explores diversity in security risks management systems. It identifies examples of good practice and provides guidance to organisations on how to balance staff security and duty of care obligations while still respecting their employees’ rights to privacy, equality and non-discrimination. Also check out their recent blog post on Departing from a Blank-Profile Approach to NGO SRM.
Gender
- GISF| Gender and Security: Guidelines for mainstreaming gender in security risk management (EN, FR, ES)
This 2012 GISF paper raises general awareness about gender and how it relates to security risk management and provides practical tools for effective integration of gender-specific considerations to the existing security management practices.
These 2016 guidelines provide practical advice to security personnel on the preparation and response to gender-based incidents.
The purpose of this 2017 manual is to ensure that gender considerations are included in all components of the UNSMS Security Risk Management process.
ACT have developed these 2017 guidelines to introduce the concept of gender security for all staff, to serve as a tool to ensure duty of care and to allow human resources to ensure equal, unbiased and open employment standards, while at the same time guiding security personnel and managers on how to adapt their security plans and risk assessments.
Sexual Violence
- GISF | Managing Sexual Violence Against Aid Workers (EN, FR, ES)
This 2019 GISF guide aims to support aid agencies in preventing, being prepared for and responding to incidents of sexual violence against their staff. It is intended as a good practice guide to help strengthen existing processes and support organisations as they set up their own protocols. Check out their new mobile guide on this topic.
The 2019 Aid Worker Security Report examines the issue of sexual violence and the differing risks for female and male aid workers in violent operational settings. The study shows that while today we see the beginning of better reporting and gender-specific staffing numbers, sexual violence continues to be underreported by an indeterminate but significant degree.
This 2017 report contributes to understanding, preventing, and responding to sexual assault against aid workers. It presents findings on who the survivors of sexual harassment and assault are; who the perpetrators are; the conditions that enable and inhibit this violence; agencies’ responses, from training through medical and emotional care for survivors.
LGBTI+ Resources
- Disaster Ready | LGBTQIA Safety and Security Awareness Training (EN, FR, ES, AR)
This 25-minute Disaster Ready course is designed to raise personal safety and security awareness for those travelling to countries where the risk to members of the LGBTQIA community are elevated. This course is also designed to support allies to the LGBTQIA community whose actions may reduce risks, or alternatively may exacerbate a problem as a consequence of well-intended, but inappropriate, actions.
This 2017 GISF article discusses the digital threats faced by aid workers who identify or are perceived as LGBTQ+ and ways in which they and non-governmental organisations can prepare and respond to them.
Transgender Europe is a network of different organisations working to combat discrimination against trans people and support trans people rights in Europe and Central Asia.
ILGA is a worldwide federation providing up-to date information on criminalisation, recognition and protections for individuals who identify as LGBTQI. ILGA have developed a website that maps sexual orientation laws globally, which can be used to inform risk assessments.
- LGBTQ Aid and Development Workers (EN, FR, ES)
The LGBTQ Aid and Development Workers website aims to provide opportunities for aid workers to network and discuss relevant issues. The website contains lists of national LGBTQI organisations and an overview of some inclusive policies used by humanitarian and development organisation
Stonewall’s Safe Travel Guideline targets organisations, rather than individual LGBTQI aid workers, and focuses on how organisations can best support their LGBTQI staff who need to travel for work. The guidelines also provide some examples of best practice where organisations have altered their practices and addressed barriers to the safe travel of their LGBTQI staff members.
Equaldex is a collaborative knowledge base (wiki) that compiles information about LGBT rights by country including homosexuality, marriage, changing gender, adoption, discrimination, donating blood etc.
Through the UN Tracking Map, access references to sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics by country.
Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity 2020: The 2020 country profiles developed by Human Rights Watch (HRW) provide information on countries that criminalise consensual same-sex conduct or gender expression, and some other countries in which notable events related to LGBT rights took place in 2019.
- UN Free and Equal Factsheet (EN, FR, ES, AR, RU, ZH, PT)
These United Nations factsheets break down the human rights challenges facing lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people everywhere and the actions that can be taken to tackle violence and discrimination and protect the rights of LGBT people everywhere.
Travel tips, frequently asked questions, guidance, additional resources for LGBTQ Travel Safety
Disability Inclusion Resources
These 2021 guidelines provide practical first-hand advice and best practice recommendations from people with disabilities. The guidelines highlight the challenges that can be faced by aid workers with disabilities when travelling and offer tips and advice on how organisations and aid workers with disabilities can overcome them. The document also discusses some of the cultural perceptions of disabilities that aid workers may come across when travelling. This document was developed with the aim to be as accessible as possible, meaning that it can be read by text-to-word translators.
These 2021 guidelines were developed by and for travellers who are visually impaired, with the aim to provide useful and practical advice to travellers who are visually impaired. This document was developed with the aim to be as accessible as possible, meaning that it can be read by text-to-word translators.
CBM’s Security Guideline for People with Albinism provides concrete and specific advice to people with albinism as well as those working with them, to remain safe within the context of where they live. It also provides easy to implement steps in handling an incident and swiftly mobilise useful resources to try and return a victim back to safety.
CBM’s 2016 briefing paper aims to encourage security managers and policy makers towards implementing disability inclusive safety and security protocols and standards as an integral part of Duty of Care within the humanitarian, development and private sector.
This 2020 document provides guidelines for disability considerations in security risk management.
This 2-page guideline offers practical advice for security professionals on how to incorporate disability concerns into their work.
- UN | Disability Inclusion Strategy (EN, FR, ES, AR, RU, ZH)
- ITCILO | Disability in the Workplace (EN, FR, ES, IT, PT)
In this interactive video-based course, employers, experts and persons with disabilities themselves share their latest insights, knowledge and experiences to enable you to identify the competitive advantage of including people with disabilities in your workforce, to create a business case, and to plan, implement and audit your disability inclusion strategy.
This 40-minute video includes interesting and thought-provoking statements, resources and good practices from UNICEF and partners from across the globe. The objective of the orientation is to strengthen understanding of, and capacity to support, programming for children and women with disabilities.
Other
- Save the Children | Personal Safety and Security Certificate (EN, FR, ES, AR)
The online course includes a 10-minute Ready to Go Mobile Guide on ‘Diversity and Inclusion’, which provides guidance on how to mitigate individual, organisational, and context-related vulnerabilities and biases to maximise the safety and security of staff.
- Save the Children | Inclusive Travel Tips Guidance, 2019 (EN, FR, ES, AR)
This travel guidance gives practical recommendations to Save the Children staff traveling to countries of operation, to reduce the likelihood of incidents. The focus is on women, LGBTQI+, staff with disabilities and special conditions. This guidance is part of a wider project on Inclusive Travel Management started in 2019, which includes awareness raising videos and inclusive pre-departure information.
This video was realised by Save the Children Global Safety and Security Team, with the participation of STC Diversity and Inclusion Council and the Director of the Global Interagency Security Forum. It gives inclusive travel tips for international staff. It is also available with FR, ES, AR subtitles
This video is about the impact of unconscious biases on staff safety and security while travelling and working in different contexts. It is a lighthearted awareness raising tool for all staff. It is also available with FR, ES, AR subtitles.
This 2021 document collects and lists best practices for ensuring security learning or training activities are inclusive for all learners.
This 2021 article helps to deconstruct our language, assumptions and common paths in Safety and Security Risk Management in.
This global database provides information on travel and residency restrictions for people living with HIV/AIDS.