Experience has shown that coordinating needs assessments not only brings significant benefits but can also help save more lives and restore more people’s livelihoods. Bearing in mind this valuable lesson, the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) established the Needs Assessment Task Force (NATF) in March 2009 to improve coordinated assessment processes and strengthen the identification of strategic humanitarian priorities in complex emergencies and natural disasters. Along with emergency preparedness, the timeliness and quality of assessments help determine an effective humanitarian response.
The credibility and accuracy of assessment results are the basis for needs-based planning and can have long-lasting effects on everything from the quality of interagency coordination, to donor funding levels and relationships with national governments, local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and disaster-affected populations.