WHY ABDULAHI CONSULTING EXISTS

1. Issues Facing the Aid Sector

Humanitarian and development organisations responding to complex emergencies and early recovery contexts face set of technical and operational challenges that hampers the effective delivery of humanitarian and development assistance.

Problem 1 Funding: One of the major issues faced is the steady decline in funding. The sector is currently experiencing unpreceded funding cuts, layoffs and programme suspensions. The most vulnerable are negatively affected by these funding short falls.

Problem 2 Access and Aid Delivery:  unembedded access to displacement affected communities in hard-to-reach (H2R) areas has become increasingly difficult, making it nearly impossible to provide humanitarian and development support where it is most needed. Such circumstances create an urgent need for additional capacity support to ensure that interventions are timely and effective and that NGOs/CSOs are supported through this process both technically and thematically thus facilitating mission critical work.

3 Localisation is not done deal: While humanitarian actors are increasingly prioritising localisation of aid delivery, structural and systemic challenges remain. For instance, the complexities of risk management and rigid donors and government requirements for local actors in accessing aid remain a barrier, local actors have to navigate through a complex of eligibilities and compliance to get funding as downstream partner(s). This relationship has demonstrated its lack of effectiveness and power imbalances.  Despite the growing need for local ownership and initiatives in the humanitarian delivery architecture, a significant top-down approach persists, even as operational contexts continue to evolve.

Problem 4 Lack of Solutions for the Displaced: Humanitarian organisations face significant uncertainty regarding how to effectively address a range of interconnected vulnerabilities, needs and capacities within displacement contexts. displacements are becoming protracted, solutions are becoming harder to achieve and political will is diminishing, there is a notable lack of practical approaches to overcoming displacement related challenges, which frequently results in gaps in support and intervention for affected populations.

Globally, millions of people—including refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and asylum seekers—continue to lack essential protection and sustainable solutions as a result of enduring displacement. This persistent situation contributes to the emergence of lost generations and perpetuates protracted displacement, often with no foreseeable resolution.

While AC recognises that it cannot address every aspect of the humanitarian system or meet all client needs, the company maintains a targeted approach by concentrating on critical areas within the sector, specifically Education in Emergencies (EiE) and durable solutions. These sectors are mostly underfunded and are excluded from response plans for instance.

Problem 5 Children are out of School:  Globally, staggering 272 million children are out of school worldwide. Education is a lifesaving and protective during emergencies and early recovery contexts. It provides normalcy and hope and should be considered as a right for each child even in emergencies.

The EiE is among the least prioritized in emergency contexts as its not seen as lifesaving. The situation is further exacerbated by ongoing cuts to education funding, which threaten to increase the number of children deprived of educational opportunities even further. EiE responses are characterised by lack of funding, lack of prioritisation for the sector and limited capacities to address the mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPPS) needs of the most vulnerable children and youth in affected communities. 

Problem 6 Youth in Displacement not prioritized: Youth in displacement settings are among the least prioritised groups as well with many youths facing their own challenges. Their needs are very different from adults and children, and they remain vulnerable to turning to negative coping mechanisms to survive in the harsh realities of displacement experiences, instances of early child marriage, substance abuse, hopelessness and recruitment into armed groups are very common. Traditional solutions to youth unemployment include vocational skills training and livelihoods support to ensure they transition from learning to earning. While this might work, market dynamics, cultural barriers and lack of opportunities post-graduation and lack support derail some of the gains made in this domain. we will empower the youth, supporting them to be the agents and drivers of changes in their lives and societies and aim to consultant them, include them in the decision-making process in their lives.

Problem 7 National teams Need capacities to Deliver Aid:  Capacity gaps exist in local settings as there is limited support or priority in this domain of work. While understand the sensitivities around Capacity building measures, we are also keen to highlight gaps that may require support to national actors for effective aid delivery.

Problem 8 Research and Learning Gaps in Emergencies: While the focus is to save lives and delivery humanitarian aid, there is  growing gaps on lessons learned and to connect emergencies to recovery and development. The humanitarian response is disjointed and not many actors are keen to address this gap in research and data informed decisions. In many displacement settings, there is a possibility of aid doing harm and programs may not be inline with community needs or address local solutions.

2. Our Solutions

Abdulahi Consulting is an agile humanitarian and development consultancy that offers technical and operational support to clients worldwide. based out of Dublin, Ireland we are focused on improving the lives of the displaced by offering a consultancy service to a wide range of humanitarian and development actors working in emergencies, early recovery and or development contexts.

Guided by humanitarian principles and values, we aim to create a world where people affected by displacement, natural and man-made disasters and climate change access their rights to dignity, freedoms and assistance that results in solutions for displacement. we work with principled humanitarian actors, Civil societies and NGOs to effectively address humanitarian and development needs in affected communities world-wide. Our efforts are geared towards ensuring efficacy and positively impacting the lives of the displaced through principled consulting.

We deploy experts to respond to anticipatory, emergency, humanitarian, early recovery and development challenges in the regions and communities most impacted by crisis and climate change.

Our 5 core thematic areas inform our consultancy practice and form the basis of our intervention globally.

In theme 1, Education and youth, we address client needs related to Education in Emergencies (EiE) and youth in displacement settings, focusing on Access to education, school needs assessments, teaching and learning as well Technical and Vocational skills (TVET) and livelihoods for Youth. We also support Youth job placement though the Erasmus + in Europe. 

In Theme 2, Durable solutions, we address key solutions in any displacement settings in conformity with IASC (inter-Agency Standing committee) guidelines for durable solutions. This include but is not limited to Resettlement, Local integration and return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to places of origin as we aim to end displacement and address key gaps through social cohesion strengthening, resilience building and promoting self-reliance. 

In theme 3, Research and MERL Services, our practise focuses on field research and quality data collection. We address key gaps in research and information, monitoring and evaluation and learning in humanitarian and early recovery contexts

In thematic 4, Programme management and Proposal writing, Abdulahi Consulting delivers high quality programme development and proposal writing services designed to support clients securing humanitarian and development funding through a competitive process.

In Theme 5, Training and Capacity building, we offer capacity building support to our clients in key selected areas including targeted training and capacity building services to clients across several key areas, including education, durable solutions, and institutional capacity support. Our programmes are designed to strengthen core competencies and build sustainable organisational capabilities in fundraising, Strategy development and localisation which are vital for local actors in the evolving donor landscape and needs.