About us
Who we are
Protect Aid Workers is a rapid-response mechanism led by a group of NGOs
What we do
Our mission is to strengthen assistance to aid workers who have experienced security incidents, are under immediate threat of harm, or have been arrested and/or are facing legal charges due to their work as a humanitarian.
- We run a rapid-response mechanism that can provide, on short notice, financial support of up to €10,000 towards incident response and protection of aid workers.
- We support aid workers who are or have been threatened with arrest and detention.
- We monitor the situation of aid workers and raise awareness about their need for protection.
- We promote the exchange of good practices in duty of care for staff
Why our work is needed
Amidst violent conflicts and complex humanitarian crises around the globe, we need aid workers more than ever to support the world’s most vulnerable people. But ensuring these humanitarian personnel are well-protected is a prerequisite for providing aid to those in need.
Protecting aid workers has always been a challenge. And in today’s context, it is harder than ever. Attacks against humanitarian personnel seem to be accelerating, with 2023 the deadliest year on record for aid workers.
Local and national frontline workers face the greatest risks – whether they are employed formally by international, national or local organizations, or are working outside the aid system. In fact, national workers account for 90% of the individuals attacked.
Despite this, national staff remain the least protected. The Protect Aid Workers mechanism aims to address this. It has been designed to help improve the ability of organizations to respond to critical incidents that put their humanitarian workers and their families at risk – especially national staff including/and community volunteers.
