Project SHARE

Project SHARE
Name	Project SHARE
Founded	1970s
Founder	unspecified
Type	humanitarian aid / development program
Area served	international
Focus	disaster relief, health, education, infrastructure

Project SHARE Project SHARE was an international humanitarian and development initiative active across several decades, engaging multiple agencies, universities, and non-governmental organizations in disaster relief and capacity-building activities. It coordinated with agencies and donors to deploy personnel, technology, and resources in response to crises and chronic needs in regions affected by natural disasters, conflict, and public-health emergencies. The program drew participation from academic institutions, bilateral partners, multilateral institutions, and private foundations to implement projects in health, shelter, water, and logistics.

Background and Objectives

Project SHARE emerged amid a landscape shaped by post-World War II reconstruction efforts and the rise of international development institutions such as World Bank, United Nations, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Children's Fund, and regional development banks like the Asian Development Bank and African Development Bank. Its objectives included delivering emergency assistance, strengthening local capacity through training with universities such as Harvard University, University of Oxford, University of California, Berkeley, and London School of Economics, and coordinating with non-governmental organizations like Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam, and CARE. The initiative sought to bridge gaps between bilateral donors such as the United States Agency for International Development, Department for International Development, Agence Française de Développement, and philanthropic entities like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation. Project goals emphasized rapid response, sustainable reconstruction, public-health interventions, and community-driven development in collaboration with national institutions and local partners including ministries and municipal authorities.

Organization and Funding

Organizational arrangements for Project SHARE typically involved consortia of academic centers, humanitarian NGOs, and contracting firms such as Chemonics, Foster Wheeler, and AECOM to manage logistics, monitoring, and evaluation. Funding came from a mix of bilateral aid from governments including United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, contributions from multilateral lenders like the International Monetary Fund in coordination with World Health Organization priorities, and grants from foundations such as the Ford Foundation and Carnegie Corporation of New York. Donor coordination occurred in forums resembling the Good Humanitarian Donorship Initiative, International Donors Conference, and regional donor meetings hosted by organizations like Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the European Commission. Administrative oversight drew on practices from entities such as United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and audit standards akin to those used by Transparency International and International Organization for Standardization.

Operations and Implementation

Operational models for Project SHARE combined rapid-deployment teams modeled on United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination units, field logistics inspired by Médecins Sans Frontières operations, and reconstruction approaches similar to post-typhoon recovery efforts in Philippines and post-earthquake rebuilding in Haiti. Implementation included shelter distribution, water-sanitation-hygiene campaigns paralleling UNICEF programs, mobile clinics reflecting protocols from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and education-in-emergencies methods used by Save the Children and Plan International. Field partnerships involved national disaster management agencies such as Federal Emergency Management Agency and regional centers like ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance to align relief with local contingency plans. Monitoring and evaluation adopted frameworks comparable to Logical Framework Approach and Results-Based Management used by United Nations Development Programme and bilateral agencies.

Technology and Methodology

Technological tools and methodologies deployed under Project SHARE mirrored innovations from humanitarian technology initiatives, employing satellite communications similar to Inmarsat services, geographic information systems pioneered by projects in Esri, remote sensing from NASA satellites, and mobile data collection platforms akin to KoboToolbox and Open Data Kit. Logistics and supply-chain methods reflected practices from UPS and World Food Programme supply chains, incorporating cold-chain solutions inspired by Pfizer vaccine distribution and renewable-energy systems using technologies promoted by International Renewable Energy Agency. Public-health methodologies referenced protocols from World Health Organization, vaccination strategies modeled after Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, and water-quality standards consistent with World Health Organization guidelines. Training curricula drew on pedagogical approaches from Teachers College, Columbia University and capacity-building frameworks used by International Rescue Committee.

Impact and Outcomes

Project SHARE's interventions produced outcomes comparable to collaborative relief efforts after major disasters such as the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, 2005 Kashmir earthquake, and 2010 Haiti earthquake, contributing to shelter provision, disease-prevention campaigns, and reconstruction of schools and clinics. Impacts included short-term reductions in mortality and morbidity in targeted populations, restored essential services in communities, and enhanced technical capacity among local staff trained through partnerships with institutions such as Johns Hopkins University, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and Imperial College London. Evaluations and case studies drew comparisons with programs supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and multilateral recovery projects financed by World Bank loans. Long-term outcomes varied, with successful transitions to local ownership in some regions and mixed sustainability in others, echoing patterns seen in post-conflict reconstruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina and development aid projects in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Criticisms and Challenges

Critiques of Project SHARE reflected common challenges faced by international programs, including concerns about coordination reminiscent of debates around Cluster Approach effectiveness, dependency risks discussed in analyses of foreign aid, and questions of accountability raised in reports by organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Operational challenges included logistical bottlenecks comparable to those encountered by World Food Programme and International Committee of the Red Cross, cultural and language barriers found in deployments to regions such as Sierra Leone and Afghanistan, and funding volatility influenced by fiscal policies in donor countries like United States and United Kingdom. Lessons highlighted the need for stronger local institutions, improved monitoring similar to reforms advocated by International Development Committee (UK), and adaptive programming in line with recommendations from Overseas Development Institute and Center for Global Development.

Category:Humanitarian aid