Evaluating food and relief programmes on the Burma/Thailand
border, 2000
Background
Refugees have been entering Thailand since 1984 at a
rate of approximately 7,000 per year. By early 2000 there were approximately
125,000 refugees in eleven refugee camps spread north and south along
the Burma/Thailand border.
Food and other relief supplies are provided to the refugees
by the five agencies of the Burmese Border Consortium (BBC), while a variety
of medical agencies provide health and medical care. The BBC works through
refugee committees and under the umbrella of the Committee for Co-ordination
of Services to Displaced Persons in Thailand (CCSDPT). The present chair
of the CCSDPT is from BBC. BBC programming is carried out with the authorisation
and approval of the Thai Ministry of the Interior.
How Sphere was used
In 2000 the BBC asked DanChurchAid to fund an evaluation
of its programme. The unique characteristic of this evaluation was the
requirement to review the BBC's programme with reference to Sphere's minimum
standards for food aid and nutrition. The evaluation examined the relevance
and applicability of the Sphere indicators in the local social and economic
context of the BBC programme. As well as recommending areas for improvement
and indicators for monitoring, the evaluation also provided an opportunity
to contribute to the debate on the universality of the indicators developed
by the Sphere Project.
Carried out in February and March 2000, the evaluation
compared the performance of the BBC programme with each of the 24 minimum
standards and all of the 151 Sphere indicators relating to food and nutrition.
Using a participatory methodology, extensive discussions were held with
refugees, BBC staff, members of the BBC Board of Directors and other agencies
collaborating with the BBC. The evaluation's consultant also visited six
refugee camps housing approximately 80,000 refugees. The choice of camps
to be visited was based on a sample which reflected differing population
sizes, different ethnic groups (Karen, Karenni) and where all five of
the co-operating medical agencies could be interviewed. Extensive discussions
were held with all Refugee Committees as well as representatives of all
NGOs working in the camps visited.
The evaluation identified a number of deficiencies in
the BBC programme in relation to the Sphere minimum standards and indicators.
Recommendations for improvements were subsequently implemented. For example:
· The process of developing a policy on gender
was started.
· Since the general food ration was marginally deficient in protein
and fat content, a revised food basket was negotiated with the Thai authorities.
· A nutritionist was deployed to monitor the nutritional condition
of the population in all camps, to conduct nutrition training with staff
and refugees and carry out nutritional research.
· Indicators to monitor the health and nutrition
components the programme were developed, using Sphere key indicators where
appropriate.
Lessons learned
The evaluation found that the Sphere minimum standards
and indicators for food and
nutrition were generally applicable to the situation on the Burma/Thailand
border, and that overall they provided a useful tool for programme evaluation.
However, not all the indicators were relevant and the
evaluation concluded that the minimum standards in their entirety are
not suitable for use as a formal monitoring tool, or as a format for reporting
to donors. Instead, they should be used selectively as a means of improving
programme effectiveness.
The Sphere minimum standards were designed for use in a major disaster
response, so using them for programmes on the Burma-Thailand could be
controversial. Here, a relatively small number of healthy refugees cross
the border into camps with long- established and efficient systems in
place. For this reason, a number of Sphere indicators, particularly those
related to assessment procedures, were redundant.
Despite these issues, the main value of using the Sphere
minimum standards and indicators for an evaluation was demonstrated by
the fact that most of the recommendations from this evaluation were implemented
by the BBC and the medical agencies working along the border.
Contact: Ralph Hazleton. Email: ralph@cyberus.ca
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