A Career in Humanitarian Aid and International Development Logistics
Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian
purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises such as natural and/or man-made
disasters. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate
suffering, and maintain human dignity. It may therefore be distinguished from
development aid, which seeks to address the underlying socioeconomic factors which may
have led to a crisis or emergency.
The work
Logistics and the supply chain skills have never been more important to providing
effective humanitarian assistance. Logistics activities account for a very large
proportion of the costs involved in a disaster relief operation. The logistician also
plays a hugely significant role in development and aid work – making sure the
right resources are in the right place, at the right time and in the right quantities,
providing emergency relief and rehabilitation assistance to make a lasting
difference.
In the event of disasters humanitarian logisticians are drafted in to respond
rapidly and appropriately to assist the affected population with food, shelter, or
medical care. They work with a variety of local and international partners to
co-ordinate the procurement and distribution of relief supplies. As part of a
longer term development plan, logisticians will also look at ways to strengthen supply
chains and introduce management procedures to handle future procurement, warehousing,
inventory management and distribution, applying commercial practice in a humanitarian
aid environment.
The skills
Working in humanitarian logistics requires a wide range of skills:
- Previous experience in a logistics, supply chain or transport management
role
- Planning and organisational skills
- Teamwork skills
- Leadership skills
- Flexibility – overseas postings and irregular hours are to be expected
in humanitarian aid work
- Language and cross cultural skills
- Resilience – need to be able to cope under pressure: working conditions
can be tough and things don’t always go to plan
Entry requirements
Those with relevant logistics and supply chain experience will be much in
demand. There are permanent job opportunities as well as opportunities for short
term assignments, which some employers support by offering employees secondment or
sabbatical opportunities.
Salary and career development
Salaries will vary and some roles will be unpaid, however, there are good
opportunities for skills development both on-the-job and via formal training
programmes. Not all roles are overseas, there are some co-ordinating roles based
in the UK, but mostly the work will involve some overseas travel.
Employers
Humanitarian and development aid roles exist across a range of employers:
- Government agencies
- National and international aid agencies
- National and international development agencies
- Charitable organisations
Transport is one of the most important areas of aid and development work because
without it nothing would get to where it needs to be to make a difference. There
are aid and development organisations that specialise in specific
logistics/transport-related activity. Transaid (www.transaid.org) is one such organisation, working with
local people to help meet their transport needs. The organisation helps to
support the management of transport fleets in developing countries, dealing with
anything from 18 to 15,000 vehicles. Transaid helps to maintain these vehicles
and to replace them when needed.
Contacts
For more information careers in humanitarian and development aid visit the
following websites: