A Liberian woman with children who fled Cote d'Ivoire last March. © CARE/Anders NordstogaCARE and OCHA have released a new study highlighting the importance of collecting and analysing data relating to sex and age.
Sex and age matter in assessing humanitarian responses. Sex and age disaggregated data can reveal if women and men actually do receive the food aid allocated to them, identify what age groups are the most likely to return home after a conflict, and examine if latrines and infrastructures are gender appropriate.
These are but a few examples highlighted in ”Sex and Age Matter. Improving Humanitarian Response in Emergencies”, a report which shows that having the right data at the right time is crucial for humanitarian workers to respond quickly and thoroughly in emergency situations.
With the support of CARE International and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Feinstein International Center has undertaken a review to compare the policies of humanitarian actors regarding sex and age disaggregated data in real life circumstances.
The report reminds the international humanitarian community to make this type of data collection and analysis a top priority. As Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, and Robert Glasser, Secretary-General of CARE International, stated in the report’s foreword, “This report is clear about what we can do. What we need to do now is commit to doing it.”
Methodology
The researchers reviewed numerous published reports others on the effects of natural disasters and armed conflict on civilians, with a focus on publications that used sex and age disaggregated data, gender and generational analyses to document and analyze those effects. Over 300 studies, including over 250 organisational reports and 45 policy documents, were examined and 38 in-depth interviews with key humanitarian actors in the field carried out.
Findings
Sex, age and the consequences of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
The revealing nature of disaggregated data can be seen in the example of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. Official data listed 128,645 people dead and 37,063 missing. When sex and age were taken into account, it was discovered that two-thirds of those who had died were female, and that the majority of deaths were among those less than nine years old and more than 60 years old. Since the elderly were traditionally the caretakers for single parent families and young families, there was no one to look after the children.
Deceptive data
The Somalia case study highlights how data can be deceptive and how good analysis needs to encompass both particular and holistic views. A survey of school attendance around the country found that in Somalia, only 22 percent of children enrolled in school were girls. A quick conclusion would be to increase programs to improve girls’ access to education. However, with a holistic view of the numbers, another problem emerges: only 22-40 percent of all children in Somalia actually attend school. This makes the first objective to increase general attendance levels, with then an affirmative action on girls’ attendance if the ratio remains the same. While fewer girls do attend school than boys, programs must also seek to understand why boys do not go to school and resolve the issue of poor attendance among both sexes.
A Renewed Challenge for the Humanitarian Community
The ‘Sex and Age Matter’ report highlights the urgency of putting sex and age disaggregated data collection into practice. However for diverse reasons, whether budgetary restrictions, little follow up from donors or lack of importance placed on this type of data collection, the humanitarian community too often fails to collect and analyze sex and age disaggregated data. By analyzing data within this framework, emergency relief becomes more clearly focused. The vulnerabilities and different needs of men, women, boys and girls that were previously unseen become visible. This increases accountability to communities, strengthens the efficiency of aid and ultimately results in more lives saved.
The report will be available on the research centre shortly.
