The CERF secretariat commissioned this study with the objective of understanding the extent to which funding from either the Rapid Response (RR) or Underfunded Emergency (UFE) windows influences the direct funding of key humanitarian donors. This report is based mainly on 17 interviews with staff members from 13 donor countries and from the OECD’s Development Cooperation Directorate. Australia, Canada, Denmark, the European Commission, Germany, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States of America (USA) have participated in the study. The interviews took place between 27th November 2013 and 24th January 2014. The report also draws on a review of documents and an analysis of funding flows in 2013 to six crises that the CERF secretariat identified as ones to which it was the main donor.