Restore Hope

Restore Hope
PHCM TERRY C. MITCHELL · Public domain · source
Name	Restore Hope
Founded	1998
Headquarters	Nairobi, Kenya
Type	Non-governmental organization
Focus	Humanitarian relief; food security; refugee assistance; public health

Restore Hope

Restore Hope is an international humanitarian non-governmental organization that provides relief and development assistance in crisis-affected regions, focusing on food security, refugee support, and public health. Operating across Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, it collaborates with multilateral institutions, national agencies, and local civil society groups to deliver emergency response and longer-term resilience programming. Restore Hope’s work intersects with major humanitarian frameworks and international treaties, engaging with actors in complex emergencies and protracted displacement settings.

Overview

Restore Hope conducts emergency relief, disaster risk reduction, and development-oriented interventions in contexts such as droughts, conflict displacement, and epidemic outbreaks. It routinely coordinates with United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, World Food Programme, United Nations Children's Fund, and regional bodies like the African Union and European Union Civil Protection Mechanism. Restore Hope operates in countries including South Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Syria, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Jordan, and aligns programming with frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Grand Bargain (humanitarian reform) commitments.

History and Origins

Founded in 1998 by humanitarian professionals who had worked in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide, the organization emerged amid post-Cold War humanitarian reform debates and as a response to large-scale displacement in the Great Lakes region. Early operations concentrated on refugee camps and internally displaced person (IDP) settlements associated with crises like the Second Congo War and the Somali Civil War. Restore Hope expanded through the 2000s after participating in coordination mechanisms established by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, learning from responses to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami and the 2005 Kashmir earthquake. Its evolution reflects shifts prompted by the 2005 World Summit and subsequent emphasis on humanitarian–development nexus programming.

Mission and Programs

Restore Hope’s mission emphasizes lifesaving assistance, protection, and durable solutions through integrated programming in food security, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), public health, and livelihoods. Programs include emergency food distributions in coordination with the Food and Agriculture Organization, outpatient therapeutic feeding supported by Médecins Sans Frontières protocols, WASH infrastructure projects in partnership with International Committee of the Red Cross standards, and shelter responses informed by guidelines from the Shelter Cluster. Sectoral initiatives address maternal and child health leveraging protocols from World Health Organization and immunization campaigns in collaboration with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Restore Hope also implements cash transfer programs using guidelines from the Cash Learning Partnership and resilience-building projects aligned with Global Compact on Refugees principles.

Organizational Structure and Leadership

Restore Hope is structured with a central secretariat and decentralized country offices governed by a board of directors drawn from the humanitarian, academic, and philanthropic sectors. Senior leadership includes an executive director with prior experience in International Rescue Committee operations and a director of programs who previously served in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Technical advisory panels involve experts associated with institutions such as Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre. Country teams maintain liaison roles with national authorities like the Kenya Red Cross Society and intergovernmental bodies including United Nations Development Programme country offices.

Funding and Partnerships

Restore Hope’s funding portfolio combines grants from multilateral agencies, bilateral donors, private foundations, and private sector partnerships. Major institutional partners include European Commission (Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations), United States Agency for International Development, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for refugee-focused programs. Corporate partnerships have involved logistics support from firms such as UPS and technology collaborations with companies like Microsoft to manage data systems. Restore Hope also engages with humanitarian networks including START NETWORK and the Sphere Project to harmonize standards.

Impact and Evaluation

Restore Hope employs monitoring and evaluation systems consistent with standards from the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership International and uses randomized controlled trials in partnership with academic institutions for selected livelihoods and cash transfer projects. Independent evaluations conducted by consultants affiliated with Independent Commission for Aid Impact benchmarks report reductions in acute malnutrition rates and improved access to safe water in targeted interventions. Restore Hope’s programmatic impact has been cited in policy reviews by the Global Humanitarian Overview and the Overseas Development Institute for its innovations in cash assistance and integration of protection mainstreaming.

Controversies and Criticism

Critiques of Restore Hope have centered on allegations of insufficient context analysis in rapid deployments and challenges in maintaining impartiality in highly politicized environments like Darfur and parts of Syria. Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have, in specific incidents involving multiple agencies, highlighted risks of aid diversion and constraints posed by access denials. Donor audits from entities like European Court of Auditors and parliamentary oversight bodies have prompted reforms in procurement and partnering policies, while academic critiques published in journals associated with Oxford University and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health recommend stronger local capacity transfer and transparency measures.

Category:International humanitarian organizations