Whistleblower protection policy

The IFRC has a zero tolerance policy to any form of retaliation against a person who either reports reasonably held suspicions of a breach of our internal rules or who cooperates in an audit or investigation process carried out under the authority of the Secretary General. This policy: Sets outthe principles and processes for reporting a suspicion of alleged misconduct Establishes the procedures for protecting individuals who report a suspicion of alleged misconduct from any form of retaliation Reinforces a culture in which the IFRC functions, and is seen to function, in an open, transparent and fair manner. Learn more about internal audit and investigations at the IFRC.

Staff Code of Conduct

The IFRC is deeply committed to helping create safe environments free of harm or threat to the dignity of our personnel and the people we serve. When working under the Red Cross Red Crescent emblems, we are personally and collectively responsible for upholding and promoting the values and principles these emblems represent. We are individually called on to respect the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, uphold the values of respect, dignity and integrity, and to exhibit the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct at all times and in all circumstances. The staff code of conduct includes an enhanced focus on our values as an organization and explains the obligations of IFRC representatives in light of the different security demands and needs of each location and operation. This text reflects our commitment as an organization to protect the dignity of vulnerable people and the conduct that is consistent with this aim.

Road Map to Community Resilience

The Road Map to Community Resilience is for National Society staff and volunteers, IFRC staff and our partners who want to help communities become safer and stronger. It provides step-by-step guidance on how to operationalize the IFRC's Framework for Community Resilience (FCR). It will help you coordinate programme teams in your National Society or branch and work alongside other stakeholders to enable communities to become more resilient in the face of threats. A summary of this Road Map is also available to download below.

The IFRC and community resilience: Communication guidance for National Societies

What do we mean when we saycommunity resilience? This paper explains the IFRC’s definition of and approach to building community resilience, sets out key messages, and suggests how to communicate the rationale for promoting community resilience to a broad audience. The document draws on the IFRC’s Framework for Community Resilience.

IATI Feasibility Study: Full report

TheInternational Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI)is a global initiative to improve the transparency of development and humanitarian resources and their results to address poverty and crises. As part of the World Humanitarian Summit Grand Bargain, the IFRC joined the ICRC in committing “to invest in examining the feasibility of using the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) to publish timely, transparent, harmonized and open high-quality data” . This paper provides the first stage of that examination: exploring the feasibility of the IFRC to publish IATI data covering our programmes and appeals. It finds that publication to a level comparable to other agencies is feasible, particularly for emergency appeals, for which substantial information is already in the public domain. It sets out a number of options for the IFRC, along with implications for data representation, data collection systems and processes and quality control of published data. It proposes a phased approach, that, in a second phase, would support publication of development programmes and more detailed humanitarian-related data for appeals. An executive summary and appendices to the full report are also available below.

Community-Based Surveillance: guiding principles

Community-based surveillance systems are a key step in improving the early detection and assessment of disease outbreaks. These guiding principles build on the extensive experience of communities, and of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies that support them, and offer advice on how communities can play an essential role in their own health security. For practical resources, see our community-based surveillance protocol template and assessment tool.

Effective law and policy on gender equality and protection from sexual and gender-based violence in disasters - Global case study

This report examines how national laws, policies and institutional frameworks can support gender equality in disaster risk management (DRM) and help prevent and respond to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in disasters. It contributed to the implementation of two resolutions of the 32nd International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in 2015. These were Resolution 3 on ‘Sexual and gender-based violence: Joint action on prevention and response’, and Resolution 6 on ‘Strengthening legal frameworks for disaster response, risk reduction and first aid’.

Fraud and corruption triple defence framework

The IFRC has zero tolerance for fraud and is committed to full transparency and accountability to our partners and the communities we stand with. We have significantly strengthened fraud and corruption prevention, detection and investigation in recent years in line with industry-best practice in high risk operations. This triple defence fraud prevention framework is designed to help us strengthen our three lines of defence: operations, compliance and internal investigation. Learn more about internal audit and investigations at the IFRC.

Follow-up Audit: Nepal Country Office, 2016

The Office of Internal Audit and Investigations (OIAI) performed an audit of the Nepal Country Office in October 2015. This audit made thirty-one audit recommendations. As part of the 2016 OIAI audit plan, a follow-up audit was scheduled to review the implementation status of these audit recommendations. This follow-up audit was performed in September 2016 in the IFRC office in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Internal Audit Report: European migration operation, 2016

Internal Audit Report: South Sudan Country Office, 2016

Assurance review of our South Sudan Country Office, 2016.

Social welfare policy

The Red Cross and Red Crescent commitment to working to improve the situation of the most vulnerable people offers the International Federation a solid basis for its involvement in social welfare issues. Social welfare is a state of human well-being that exists when social problems are managed, when human needs are met and when social opportunities are maximized.

Seville Agreement

The Seville Agreement is an Agreement made in 1997 on the Organization of the International Activities of the Components of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. It is an agreement on cooperation and not merely on a division of labour, and it applies to all those international activities which, under the Movement's Statutes, the components are called upon to carry out in close collaboration. It establishes clear guidelines for the performance of tasks by Movement members, using the specific areas of competence and the complementary capacities of each to best effect.

Protection of National Societies' integrity policy

In a fast changing, fragmented and unpredictable environment, the humanitarian sector must adapt to the complexity of today’s challenges. National Societies are accountable to the people they serve and are committed to act ethically and promote a culture of accountability, transparency, and ethical behavior. They always have an obligation to deliver high quality services making use of resources in the most effective and efficient way in line with the Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (the “Movement”).

Humanitarian diplomacy policy

What objectives will effective humanitarian diplomacy achieve? More frequent consideration by decision makers and opinion leaders of the interests of vulnerable people; Greater access to and influence with decision makers; Greater humanitarian access and space for National Societies and the International Federation; Strong visibility for and public understanding of Red Cross and Red Crescent activities; Stronger capacity to mobilise all relevant resources; and The facilitation of effective partnerships when responding to the needs of the vulnerable. It is only through the establishment of humanitarian diplomacy as an integral part of the day to day work of National Societies and the International Federation, with the necessary capacities in place, that the humanitarian objectives referred to above can be effectively realised. The fundamental aim of this policy is to establish humanitarian diplomacy as a permanent mindset across all National Societies and the International Federation. Humanitarian diplomacy includes advocacy, negotiation, communication, formal agreements and other measures.