November 28th, London: The World Humanitarian Action Forum (WHAF) held a roundtable discussion on ‘The Impact of De-risking on Humanitarian Organizations – Shared Risk: Shared Responsibility’. The WHAF is a one-day event organised by several humanitarian organisations and aims to encourage dialogue and action through collaboration and partnership working. This roundtable – one of three – was led by the Humanitarian Policy Group at The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) and The London School of Economics, and supported by HSC along with Islamic Relief Worldwide, Al Rayan Bank, Human Appeal, Al Khair Foundation, Charity & Security Network, The Norwegian Refugee Council and Muslim Charities Forum.

The roundtable consisted of three 90-minute sessions, and explored:
Session 1: The Problem
The implications of de-risking on humanitarian response with illustrative examples from the countries addressed in the research.
Session 2: The Practice
How humanitarian organisations are adapting to de-risking and the alternative routes of transferring funds they resort to. Available recourse (if any) within the legal system for de-risked clients.
Session 3: The Policy
Policy changes needed to ensure financial access for humanitarian organisations without exacerbating vulnerability to a common terrorist threat

For a recording of the sessions, see here. For the report, see here