All emergency situations involve an element of assessment to inform decision making. Knowledge and experience sharing, quick interaction and confrontation of expertise with different backgrounds are the best way to improve assessments methodologies and practice.
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ACAPS provides an interactive platform for humanitarian practitioners, policy makers, academics and private companies to share best-practice and encourage innovative approaches to needs assessments and contribute to the global development of a commonly accepted needs assessments methodology. |
What will this network achieve?
Bringing practitioners together
Supporting interactions and knowledge exchange. By providing an interactive and technical platform to share best-practice, lessons learned and innovative approaches to needs assessments with humanitarian practitioners and policy makers, academics and private companies, ACAPS aims to create a centre of excellence for needs assessments. This structure will help individuals and organisations at all levels to learn from each other as much and quick as possible; and it will speed up the sharing of knowledge. It will also bridge the gaps between research and application, field and non-field practitioners’ knowledge as well as humanitarian and non-humanitarian experts.
Building a Network
Creating an environment for continual and sustained development of assessment interest. The role of this community is broader than a question/answer forum to context-specific issues. This network will contribute to improve efficiency of needs assessments; it will contribute to the global development of a commonly accepted needs assessments framework and strengthen the humanitarian response through identification and dissemination of lessons learned, and through research on needs assessments. Its function includes more in-depth activities, such as policy guidance, research initiatives and international meetings.
Setting the agenda
In an effort to increase assessment knowledge and capacity ACAPS is in the process of creating a Community of Practice platform where practitioners and other interested parties can share knowledge, exchange experiences and join in creating better joint assessment. The platform will not be part of ACAPS but function independently.
Who can join this community?
Whoever wants to improve needs assessments and interact with other experts, by seeking, sharing, developing and disseminating innovative solutions in this area.
This includes regional and local partners, international organisations, NGOs, academics, technical experts and any other activists willing to promote best-practice. It is important to underline that this community not only seeks assessments experts, but also looks for expertise from different fields and backgrounds that work on humanitarian needs.
How can I join this community?
The Community of Practice on-line platform will be publicly launched after a trial period in the fall of 2012.
If you want to play an active role in the global effort to improve needs assessments, please send an email to
