Book on Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response launched

Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa participated as chief guest at the launching ceremony of Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response – Sphere Handbook 2011 Edition yesterday (24) at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute for International Relations and Strategic Studies.

The event was organised by Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (GTA) Limited. Sphere Handbook 2011 Edition has been translated to many languages worldwide and its Sinhala and  Tamil versions were released.

The Sphere Handbook establishes shared principles and a set of universally acknowledged minimum standards in four life-saving areas of humanitarian response, water and sanitation, food, shelter and healthcare.

The cornerstone of the Handbook is the Humanitarian Charter, which describes core principles that govern humanitarian action and the right to live with dignity and protection.

The extensive revision that led to the 2011 edition involved more than 650 experts from over 300 organisations from the humanitarian sector, including several United Nations agencies.

The Sphere Handbook was created by a group of humanitarian non-governmental organisations and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.