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| Shelter Now | |
|---|---|
| Name | Shelter Now |
| Type | Non-governmental organization |
| Founded | 1977 |
| Founder | Larry and Carol Gerhardt |
| Headquarters | Hamburg |
| Area served | Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria |
| Focus | Humanitarian aid, relief, reconstruction |
Shelter Now is an international humanitarian organization founded in 1977 that provides emergency relief, reconstruction, and development assistance in conflict-affected and disaster-impacted regions. The organization has worked in multiple theaters including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, and Syria and has been involved with refugee support, shelter construction, and coordination with international agencies. Shelter Now has engaged with a range of partners from intergovernmental bodies to faith-based networks while facing notable legal and operational controversies.
Shelter Now traces roots to relief efforts initiated by humanitarian activists during the aftermath of the Vietnam War, the Soviet–Afghan War, and refugee crises in South and Central Asia, responding to displacement events that involved organizations like UNHCR, International Committee of the Red Cross, and Médecins Sans Frontières. Early operations expanded amid global responses to the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan and theAfghan Civil War, linking with evangelical aid actors connected to groups such as Samaritan's Purse and World Vision. The organization’s profile rose during high-profile incidents involving international media coverage, regional actors including Taliban elements and national authorities in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and interactions with judicial proceedings involving detainees and NGO workers. Over subsequent decades, Shelter Now adapted programs in response to crises such as the Iraq War (2003–2011), the Syrian Civil War, and natural disasters that triggered coordination with United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and donor states like Germany and United States agencies.
Shelter Now’s stated mission emphasizes provision of emergency shelter, reconstruction of housing, and support for displaced populations alongside water, sanitation, and livelihood interventions; activities have intersected with projects typical of agencies like USAID, European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, and Caritas Internationalis. Programmatic work has included construction of transitional shelters, repair of schools and clinics, distribution of non-food items, and vocational training in contexts where actors such as NATO forces, Coalition forces, and regional military commands influenced access. The organization has also engaged in coordination mechanisms like cluster systems administered by OCHA and sectoral partnerships with UNICEF, World Food Programme, and local NGOs in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria.
Shelter Now has operated across South Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, and parts of Africa, with notable field presence in Kabul, Herat, Peshawar, Kandahar, Baghdad, Erbil, Aleppo, and Idlib. Operations often required interaction with provincial administrations such as Helmand Province and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa authorities, as well as coordination with international stabilization actors including ISAF and post-2003 provincial reconstruction teams. In Pakistan, programming intersected with responses to the 2005 Kashmir earthquake and the 2010 Pakistan floods, while in Iraq activities corresponded with reconstruction phases after the 2003 invasion of Iraq and during the Iraq insurgency (2003–2011) and later the War in Iraq (2013–2017) against ISIL.
The organization has been structured with a headquarters in Hamburg and field offices in regional capitals, employing expatriate managers and locally hired staff; leadership roles have included founders and directors who interfaced with international donors and local officials. Governance arrangements typically mirrored those of comparable NGOs like Save the Children and ActionAid, involving boards of trustees, program directors, and logistics units responsible for procurement and security liaison with actors such as Combined Joint Task Force elements or local police. Human resources policies had to adapt to security frameworks used by humanitarian networks and private security contractors engaged in high-risk environments.
Funding sources for Shelter Now have included private donations, faith-based networks, institutional grants, and contracts with state donors such as Germany and agencies akin to USAID and the European Commission. Partnerships have ranged from faith-based organizations, community-based groups, and international agencies including UNHCR, UNICEF, and WFP, as well as collaboration with local NGOs and municipal administrations. Procurement and financial reporting practices were aligned to donor requirements similar to those of DFID and multilateral development banks, while audit processes occasionally involved external auditors and donor oversight mechanisms.
Shelter Now became the focus of international attention during episodes involving the detention of aid workers by armed groups and security forces in Afghanistan, drawing comparisons to other high-profile NGO crises such as those affecting Médecins Sans Frontières and Oxfam. Criticism has included questions about operational security, staff vetting, and the interaction of faith-based aid motives with secular humanitarian principles as debated in forums with actors like ICRC and Red Cross societies. Legal cases and media reporting implicated negotiations with local powerbrokers, eliciting scrutiny from donor governments and human rights organizations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
Independent evaluations and donor reviews have assessed Shelter Now programs for humanitarian impact, sustainability of shelter reconstruction, and alignment with humanitarian standards exemplified by the Sphere Project. Impact studies compared outcomes to those of humanitarian actors such as Norwegian Refugee Council and Mercy Corps, measuring indicators like shelter durability, beneficiary satisfaction, and community resilience. Findings highlighted both successful rapid shelter delivery in emergencies and challenges relating to access constraints, monitoring in insecure environments, and compliance with international accountability frameworks promoted by InterAction and the Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action.