Foreword
2015 was a year of transformation for the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC). The adoption of the ETC2020 Strategy in the first half of the year, radically expanding the vision, scope and approach of the cluster, set the network on a much more impactful, but challenging, trajectory. 2015 was characterised by the adoption and commenced implementation of ETC2020 as well as the most concurrent emergencies ever responded to; and the invaluable contributions of its members and partners without which, the ETC would not exist.
In addition to operations in Central African Republic, Iraq, South Sudan, Syria and West Africa inherited from 2014, conflict raging in Yemen, Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu and the earthquakes in Nepal added additional connectivity demands on the already stretched cluster’s capacity. In all, the ETC responded to an unprecedented eight concurrent emergencies.
Across these operations, the ETC experienced a number of ‘firsts’, indicative of the evolving emergency landscape and which would influence the new strategy. Seeing that the community needing connectivity to respond to Ebola in West Africa was not ‘just’ humanitarians, the ETC expanded its scope, providing services to humanitarian, healthcare and government responders at 80+ facilities across the three affected countries. Responding at the direct requestof the government in Vanuatu, the ETC was “embedded” in the Office of the Chief Information Officer, working directly with the National Disaster Management Office. In Nepal, ETC preparedness efforts had established a solid network of humanitarian, privatesector and government entities which allowed a faster and more effective response after the quake.
The rapidly evolving humanitarian and technology environments shape the way the ETC responds.
April 2015 was the turning point. Developed in close collaboration with over 40 organisations, the ambitious ETC2020 strategy builds upon the cluster’s years of experience, its expertise and its network of dedicated partners. Through ETC2020, for the first time, the ETC is engaging in Communications with Communities(CwC), leveraging its network of partners and expertise to provide disaster-affected people with the ability to communicate. In recognition of communities’ role in first response, ETC2020 activities seek to improve and decentralise preparedness activities. Connectivity and energy solutions will be enhanced as the ETC will continue to deliver its current mandate of providing timely, predictable, and effective emergency communications services to the humanitarian community.
Achieving the ETC2020 vision will take strong engagement with an expanded and more connected network, from leading edge Information Technology (IT)companies and local telecommunications providers, to humanitarians, governments and affected communities. Partnership and collaboration are key to successful functioning of the ETC.
2015 was a year of change for the ETC, but in many ways it was not unique. More emergencies, across wider areas and affecting more people has become the new norm and one for which the entire response community must prepare.
While continuing to provide connectivity services to the response community, the ETC objective is very different now to what it was 12 months ago. And in just four years from now, through working with governments to build resilience, decentralising response readiness and strengthening the capacity of affected people to respond, the ETC will ensure that all those responding to humanitarian emergencies have access to vital communications services and digital aid.
