From Humanitarian Assistance to Human Development

by Rosalía Rodriguez-García, James A. Macinko

Civil, political and military conflict--Natural and man-made disasters--Poverty and human suffering...As the new millennium approaches, the need for humanitarian assistance in response to these global challenges endures. Complex humanitarian emergencies demand human, financial and material resources on an international scale. This presents the global community, and particularly the health sector, with a formidable and daunting task: Faced with limited resources, how can organizations and actors simultaneously meet immediate humanitarian needs while maintaining their commitment to long term human development? More specifically, how can humanitarian relief and sustainable human development efforts be linked?

From Humanitarian Assistance to Human Development responds and reacts to this question by serving as a forum for distinguished members of the health and development arena to present issues, policies and innovative programs in response. Divided into three sections, the book examines the humanitarian assistance-human development continuum within the global-policy context of human development, reviews humanitarian assistance as a social phenomena, highlights country experiences in Rwanda and Bosnia, and discusses means of relieving human suffering and restoring infrastructure and health and social services in the aftermath of conflict.

In this thought-provoking, informative volume, the perspectives, experiences and proposals of specialists from academic institutions, national and international agencies and non-governmental organizations are united to help inform future policy, inspire programmatic action and, ultimately, bridge the gap between humanitarian assistance and human development.

127 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1998

About the author

Rosalia Rodriguez-Garcia is Professor and Chair of the Department of International Public Health and Director of The Center for International Health at George Washington University./e She has worked in the field of health and socioeconomic development policies and programs around the world since 1972. In 1992 she cofounded the Center for International Health.