Organizing For Disaster Improving Us Foreign Humanitarian Assistance Operations

U.S. Government (USG) agencies provide foreign humanitarian assistance (FHA) every year to disaster victims around the world. The ability to rapidly provide humanitarian aid serves America's national interests, but USG interagency coordination for FHA remains ad hoc at the operational level. For its part, the U.S. military is not fully prepared for the unique operational challenges of FHA. Consequently, valuable time is often lost improvising a USG response after a crisis occurs. The operational-level framework for a USG response must be in place before a foreign disaster strikes. The principles and functions of FHA are distinctive at the operational level, and participating USG agencies have unique roles and responsibilities for organizing FHA operations. Unfortunately, the lack of interagency guidance has promoted an ad hoc approach to organizing FHA operations that has hampered past relief efforts. Several measures can be taken in order to better prepare for future FHA operations. These include pre-designating and training the Joint Task Force (JTF) commander and staff for FHA; developing interagency doctrine for organizing FHA operations; and over the long term, forming a standing Joint Interagency Task Force (JIATF) for FHA.