A Reliable Knowledge Base for a Deeper Understanding of Humanitarian Work

Project Background
This research project emerges from the unprecedented humanitarian context in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023, where the ongoing conflict has led to widespread destruction of family and social structures, resulting in the emergence of a highly vulnerable category of children. The project introduces the term “Sole Family Survivor Child” to describe a child who has lost their entire immediate family due to conflict-related events. This condition goes beyond the conventional definition of orphanhood in terms of the scale of loss, the psychological and social consequences, and the long-term protection and care needs.

Problem Statement
Despite the gravity of this reality, this group remains largely unaddressed within existing research and policy frameworks. There is a clear conceptual and institutional gap, including the absence of systematic documentation, limited data, and fragmented responses that do not adequately reflect the complexity of protection, alternative care, and social reintegration needs in a context marked by repeated displacement and collapsed service systems. Preliminary estimates suggest the existence of approximately 700 sole family survivor children in Gaza, in the absence of a comprehensive official registry.

Overall Objective
The project aims to analyze the situation of sole family survivor children in the Gaza Strip and assess the effectiveness of existing institutional responses, with the goal of developing a multi-level intervention framework to support more effective and sustainable policies and programs in the areas of child protection, alternative care, and social reintegration.

Project Key Question
How can more effective and sustainable protection, alternative care, and reintegration frameworks be developed for sole family survivor children in the context of armed conflict in Gaza, based on an analysis of their conditions and an assessment of current institutional responses?

Analytical Focus Areas
** The project examines several interrelated dimensions, including:
** Identification of urgent psychosocial and health needs.
** Analysis of protection risks in contexts of repeated displacement and weakened services.
** Mapping and assessment of existing alternative care arrangements.
** Identification of structural and institutional barriers to safe and sustainable reintegration.

Methodological Approach
The project adopts a context-sensitive mixed-methods research design, combining documentary analysis, quantitative surveys, and qualitative interviews to generate a multi-level understanding of protection, care, and reintegration pathways. The methodology includes:
1- Documentary and Policy Analysis: A systematic review of policies, legal frameworks, coordination mechanisms, and institutional responses related to child protection and alternative care.
2- Quantitative Field Survey: A survey targeting approximately 250 cases across the Gaza Strip, primarily through caregivers or guardians, and with children directly involved where protection and ethical considerations allow.
3- Qualitative Study: Conducting 40–60 semi-structured interviews with key experts and actors in child protection and humanitarian response, alongside focus group discussions with frontline workers and caregivers to contextualize and interpret quantitative findings.
4- Ethical and Contextual Safeguards: The project follows strict ethical standards, including informed consent, data protection, confidentiality, and the Do No Harm principle, with research tools adapted to conditions of limited access and ongoing insecurity.

Expected Operational Outputs
The project will generate a set of practical, implementation-oriented outputs, including:
** An initial database and geographically classified maps of needs and risks to guide resource allocation.
** A standardized classification of alternative care models, supported by prevalence data and case studies.
** A multi-level intervention framework and phased implementation plan with monitoring and evaluation tools to improve coordination and resource efficiency.

Knowledge and Policy Outputs
** A comprehensive research report published in Arabic and English.
** A policy brief targeting decision-makers and donors.
** A practical toolkit for implementing agencies, including referral protocols, psychosocial support, alternative care guidance, and monitoring tools.
** At least one peer-reviewed academic publication.
** A participatory workshop to present findings and discuss recommendations with key stakeholders.

Transformative Value of the Project
The project emphasizes that investing in this integrated framework goes beyond addressing an urgent humanitarian gap. It represents a strategic entry point for rebuilding social protection systems and strengthening community resilience by transforming research-based knowledge into actionable policies and programs in one of the world’s most fragile and complex contexts.

Partnership and Funding Opportunities
The Relief Center welcomes collaboration with donors, humanitarian organizations, research institutions, and strategic partners interested in supporting or implementing this project. Opportunities include funding partnerships, field data collection, database development, and the design and rollout of the intervention framework and toolkit.

For inquiries or partnership opportunities, please contact:
Email: info@reliefcenter.com
WhatsApp: +974 7078 0863

Project Background
The Horn of Africa is one of the most food-insecure regions in the world, where recurring droughts, armed conflicts, forced displacement, economic shocks, and weak infrastructure converge to create a complex humanitarian landscape characterized by chronic hunger and limited recovery capacity. Estimates indicate that approximately 50.1 million people were facing acute food insecurity by early 2024, while nearly 70 million people experience severe hunger at least once every decade. Furthermore, around 82% of people suffering from acute food insecurity in Africa live in conflict-affected countries, including several states in the Horn of Africa. This reflects the structural and chronic nature of the crisis rather than a series of isolated emergencies.

Problem Statement
Despite the scale of humanitarian food assistance in the region, many food basket programs still rely on standardized models that fail to account for cultural, economic, and livelihood differences. This often leads to:
• Low community acceptance of food baskets.
• High levels of food resale or wastage.
• Reduced nutritional effectiveness.
• Lower cost-efficiency compared to locally adapted alternatives.
There is therefore a clear need for a regional standardized guide that links nutritional requirements and humanitarian standards with local dietary patterns, cost of living, and livelihood systems.

Overall Objective
To develop and adopt a practical standardized food basket guide for the Horn of Africa that ensures the provision of at least 2,100 kcal per person per day, while meeting macro- and micronutrient requirements using culturally preferred local staple foods. The guide aims to improve dietary outcomes, enhance community acceptance, and increase the cost-efficiency of food security interventions.

Specific Objectives
• Map current dietary patterns and staple food preferences across livelihood zones.
• Conduct cost-of-diet analysis in at least 12 representative livelihood areas.
• Develop 4–6 standardized food basket models adapted to regional contexts.
• Integrate climate-resilient and fortified foods.
• Provide guidance for adjusting baskets for vulnerable groups (children, pregnant and lactating women, elderly).
• Support adoption of the guide by regional bodies, national governments, and humanitarian clusters.

Livelihood-Based Adaptation
The guide will be tailored according to the main livelihood systems in the Horn of Africa:
1. Pastoral Areas: Focus on livestock-based foods such as camel milk and goat meat, complemented by legumes to improve dietary diversity.
2. Agro-Pastoral Areas: Integration of drought-resistant crops such as sorghum and millet alongside seasonal agricultural production.
3. Agricultural Areas: Emphasis on staple crops such as maize, beans, and other locally produced foods.
4. Urban and Peri-Urban Areas: Flexible baskets that consider access to local markets, including cash- or voucher-based interventions.

Nutritional and Climate Considerations
The guide will incorporate key nutritional and climate-related considerations, including:
• Meeting micronutrient requirements through legumes, milk, and diversified foods.
• Accounting for seasonal variability and drought-related production shocks.
• Promoting climate-resilient crops such as sorghum and millet.
• Integrating opportunistic and locally available legumes.
• Aligning food baskets with climate resilience and smallholder agriculture programs.

Methodological Approach
The project adopts a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative and qualitative analysis, including:
1. Secondary Data Analysis: Utilizing data and reports from international organizations such as FAO and WFP.
2. Field Studies: Collecting data on cultural acceptability and consumption patterns in target areas.
3. Nutritional Modeling: Applying linear programming or cost-of-diet models to identify the most cost-efficient and nutritionally adequate food baskets.
4. Alignment with Humanitarian Standards: Ensuring compliance with Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) and international nutritional standards.

Geographic Scope
The project focuses on priority countries in the Horn of Africa based on humanitarian needs and data gaps, including:
Ethiopia – Somalia – Kenya – Djibouti – Sudan - South Sudan – Eritrea - Uganda
These countries have been selected due to the convergence of chronic drought, conflict, forced displacement, and high levels of food insecurity, making them priority contexts for developing a regionally adapted food basket guide that reflects diverse livelihood systems and dietary patterns.

Expected Outputs
• A regionally adapted standardized food basket guide.
• Practical food basket models applicable in humanitarian programs.
• Costing tools linked to local markets.
• Operational guidance on modality selection (in-kind, cash, or vouchers).
• Regional workshops to support adoption and implementation of the guide.

Added Value of the Project
The project will:
• Improve cost-efficiency in food security interventions.
• Increase community acceptance of food assistance.
• Reduce food wastage and resale.
• Strengthen climate and livelihood resilience.
• Align humanitarian interventions with local realities.

Partnership and Funding Opportunities
The Relief Center welcomes collaboration with donors, humanitarian organizations, regional bodies, and strategic partners interested in supporting or implementing this project. Opportunities include funding, field research, and the development and regional adoption of the standardized guide.

For inquiries or partnership opportunities, please contact:
• Email: info@reliefcenter.com
• WhatsApp: +974 7078 0863

Project Background
This research project responds to a growing shift in the understanding of orphan sponsorship and care. It is no longer viewed merely as temporary financial assistance, but rather as a multidimensional development intervention addressing the educational, psychological, social, economic, and rights-based needs of the child. Orphanhood is no longer understood as an isolated individual condition; instead, it is increasingly recognized as a structural phenomenon linked to economic, social, and political realities, particularly in contexts affected by conflict, disasters, and protracted crises.

Problem Statement
The project is based on the observation that many existing sponsorship models remain confined to short-term relief logic. In most cases, they are limited to modest financial transfers that are not aligned with the actual cost of living or the minimum requirements for a dignified life. Such models often perpetuate dependency and vulnerability among children and their families, rather than supporting their social and economic empowerment or enabling their productive integration into society over the long term.

Central Research Question
In light of the growing global number of orphans—especially in conflict-affected environments—and the widening disparities in living costs across countries and regions, the project seeks to address the following question:
To what extent can a standardized guideline for orphan sponsorship and care be developed, one that reframes it as a rights-based human investment linked to real economic indicators such as cost of living and minimum wage, and ensures holistic child development?

Significance of the Project
The project aims to fill a clear conceptual and methodological gap by systematically linking sponsorship and care programs with economic indicators in the countries where orphans live. It positions these programs within the framework of the “humanitarian economy,” viewing them as long-term social investments rather than short-term consumptive expenditures. The study will also examine the gap between nominal sponsorship values and the actual needs of children, and propose more equitable models that account for regional differences and changing living costs.

Methodological Approach
The project adopts an integrated methodological framework combining a multi-regional comparative analysis with an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, aimed at developing a practical and adaptable standardized guideline.
The study covers four regions representing diverse economic and developmental contexts:
Middle East and North Africa
South Asia
East Africa
Southeast Asia

Data collection will rely on a mixed set of research tools, including:
Analytical review of national social protection policies and operational guidelines.
Quantitative institutional survey targeting organizations working in the selected regions.
Analysis of cost-of-living, minimum wage, and poverty indicators.
In-depth interviews with policymakers, program managers, and economic experts.
Focus group discussions with caregivers and beneficiaries.
Case studies of innovative sponsorship programs.

Expected Outputs
The project is expected to produce a comprehensive set of practical outputs, including:
A rights-based standardized guideline for orphan sponsorship and care.
A dynamic tool for calculating sponsorship values based on cost-of-living, inflation, and minimum wage indicators.
A multi-regional comparative study.
Monitoring and evaluation tools to assess children’s development across educational, health, psychological, and social dimensions.

Transformative Vision
The project offers a transformative vision that redefines orphan sponsorship and care from a temporary humanitarian response into a development-oriented policy centered on human investment. It aims to enhance children’s chances of living dignified and stable lives, and to contribute to breaking cycles of poverty and vulnerability across generations.

Partnership and Funding Opportunities
The Relief Center welcomes collaboration with donors, humanitarian organizations, research institutions, and strategic partners interested in supporting or implementing this research project. Opportunities include funding partnerships, joint research initiatives, and field implementation across the targeted regions.

For inquiries or partnership opportunities, please contact the Relief Center team:
Email: info@reliefcenter.com
WhatsApp: +974 7078 0863