The humanitarian-development-peace nexus: current status and discourse

This is part of the EXplain: Essential briefings for humanitarian decision-makers series.

Since 2016, the humanitarian-development-peace (HDP) nexus discourse has brought a noticeable cultural shift in the humanitarian sector. The concept has gone in and out of fashion over the years, but through recent nexus work, the long-existing concepts of Linking Relief Recovery and Development (LRRD) and resilience have increasingly moved out of niche circles and into more mainstream, system-wide initiatives. This has sparked structural reforms in several agencies and prompted even more traditional humanitarian actors such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and development stakeholders such as the World Bank to engage in new partnerships that may have been unthinkable a decade ago. The nexus is back on the agenda, as a planned core theme for Grand Bargain 3.0. This is partly in response to aid recipients continuing to repeat their desire for aid that better enables self- sufficiency and resilience.