Southern and Eastern Africa Regional Consultation Report

Our Southern and Eastern Africa (SCA) regional consultation report seeks to understand the perspectives of regional stakeholders on the functioning of R&;I ecosystems, decision-making processes, and priority areas in the region. The report provides insights into implementing culturally and contextually appropriate humanitarian research and innovation (HRI) responses.

The SEA region faces a range of humanitarian and development challenges, including food insecurity, health crises, climate change impacts, conflict, displacement, and socioeconomic inequalities. Addressing these complex issues requires an integrated approach that incorporates research and innovation (R&;I) into response strategies. R&;I can play a pivotal role in forecasting and understanding crises, assessing needs, developing solutions, informing humanitarian actions, and monitoring progress.

Key findings:

• Stakeholder Engagement: While there is a moderate level of involvement from regional and national actors in R&;I efforts, biases, unequal resource distribution, and systemic issues like lack of coordination limit their participation.
• Barriers to R&;I Utilisation: Common barriers include limited capacity, bureaucratic hurdles, lack of funding, resource constraints, time limitations, and cultural resistance to research. These obstacles hinder both the production and implementation of R&;I findings.
• Priority R&;I Topics: Climate change, the humanitarian-development nexus, health (including sexual and reproductive health), and local community resilience are areas needing more attention. There is a perceived misalignment between current R&;I funding and the actual needs on the ground.

Recommendations:

• Adopt an Integrated R&;I Approach: Address cross-cutting humanitarian issues by ensuring R&;I interventions consider interconnected challenges.
• Promote Needs-Driven R&;I: Implement formal, inclusive R&;I prioritisation exercises involving diverse stakeholders to align R&;I efforts with local community needs.
• Support Localisation and Regional Leadership: Strengthen regional leadership in R&;I to ensure contextually relevant and sustainable solutions.
• Enhance Local Research Capacity: Build technical skills among local researchers and innovators to foster sustainable development and innovation.
• Strengthen Data Collection and Analysis: Improve data reliability to support evidence-based decision-making in humanitarian contexts.
• Facilitate Multi-Sector Collaboration: Encourage partnerships between humanitarian organisations, research institutions, local communities, and governments to share resources and best practices.
• Engage Local Communities: Involve communities throughout the research process to ensure interventions are culturally appropriate and meet local needs.

To effectively address the complex humanitarian challenges in the Southern and Eastern Africa region, it is essential to enhance the role of research and innovation.

By aligning R&;I efforts with local needs, overcoming existing barriers, and fostering collaboration, stakeholders can drive transformative change. Strengthening the humanitarian R&;I infrastructure will not only alleviate suffering but also contribute to sustainable development and improved quality of life for communities across the region.

This SEA consultation was undertaken by Passion Africa Ltd and the Alfred Deakin Institute, Deakin University as part of our landmark Global Prioritisation Exercise (GPE) for HRI. The consultation was led by Salome Bukachi. The practitioner partner was Dr Joseph Kamara from the World Vision East Africa Regional Office. Data collection was undertaken by Abel Simiyu, Nelson Ochieng, Tonny Onyango and Salome Bukachi. Data transcription was undertaken by Abel Simiyu, Nelson Ochieng and Ann Muthiru, and data analysis was conducted by Nelson Ochieng, Tonny Onyango Ngage, Nelson Ochieng, Salome Bukachi, Joseph Kamara and Chaza Akik.

Find out more about the GPE[.slimline-cta_paragraph][.slimline-cta-box]