Information on the Global Symposium +5

Purpose

The purpose of Global Symposium +5 was to bring together a community of practice on humanitarian information and knowledge.

Host

Global Symposium +5 was convened by ReliefWeb and Field Information Services, Advocacy Information Management Branch, New York, and Emergency Services Branch, Geneva, of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Objective

It is within this context, and with a view to building upon the work of the Humanitarian Information Network that the Global Symposium +5 took place. The symposium was an attempt to address the changing humanitarian environment through effective information management. Transforming lessons-learned and best practices into institutional knowledge represents one of the greatest challenges for the international humanitarian community today. The Symposium brought together a community of practice whose purpose was to follow-up the achievements of Symposium 2002. It reviewed the principles agreed on that occasion and best practices developed since then. This guided the participants in proposing a set of commonly agreed information standards, potentially leading to an intergovernmental process promoting the centrality of information management and exchange to support effective humanitarian preparedness and response (General Assembly Declaration). The next steps will include a series of regional follow-ups to ensure that regional experience and consensus are reflected in the process.

Venue and Dates

Global Symposium +5 was held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland from the 22 – 26 October 2007.  The Working Groups took place on 22-23 October, and the Plenary Conference was held over two-and-a half days on the 24-26 October.

Key Messages

Reform	IM underpins collaborative approaches & decision-making
Decision Making	IM is central to the effective discharge of the ERC, HC\RC, and Cluster Lead roles
Standards	Humanitarians are the stewards for best practice on IM standards, tools and services
Advocacy	IM supports evidence-based advocacy and resource mobilisation
Technology	IM tools and technology appropriate to the operational environment in support of humanitarian response capacity