MHD strategy:
Planning is an essential process for good governance and management. MHD believes that strategic planning is required by all entities towards achieving success.
MHD is one of the organizations which devise their own strategic plan, a document that articulates with an organization about its goals and objectives, the essential steps and actions need to be taken to accomplish those goals and other important elements that are developed amidst planning. Strategic plan, in reality, is a living document which directs the overall functioning MHD.
Furthermore, Strategic planning is an organizational management activity that is used to set priorities, focus energy and resources, strengthen operations, ensure that employees and other stakeholders are working toward common goals, establish agreement around intended outcomes/results, and assess and adjust the organization’s direction in response to a changing environment. This Strategic Plan sets priorities that build on that progress and that we judge will do most to reduce the injustice of poverty to 2018.
1. The Power of People against Poverty
The challenge of our generation is to find the ways to change those odds. How can we reduce extreme poverty, increase people’s rights, and balance the ecological systems that sustain life and the economic systems that sustain wealth? The answer is, simply, justice; fair use of the natural resources; an economy that reduces inequality; a world that does not discriminate against women or minorities. In all MHD’s programming and humanitarian relief efforts, we support people to claim and exercise their basic rights, to life and security, a sustainable livelihood, and the most essential services to sustain life such as livelihood and education. The right to be heard and to have a recognized identity are also a fundamental part of human well-being. These rights are explicitly grounded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations, and the relevant Treaties and Covenants. These approaches form the basis for the Strategic Plan. Fortunately, there are grounds for optimism especially in the Syrian context.
2. Equality equals Rights
Inequality keeps poor people poor and powerless, and weakens the capacity of economic growth to eradicate poverty. Systematic exclusion and discrimination create deep social problems such as youth unemployment and deny people their dignity and their voice, which deepens social frustration and the likelihood of conflict. The Strategic Plan sets the reinforcement of people’s rights, and especially women’s rights, at the heart of all we do. Beyond enabling women and marginalized people to have access to valued roles in the economy and society, we will put a particular focus on gender justice and empowering poor communities to make their voices heard. We will also push for meaningful social protection to ensure that communities’ most basic needs are met. MHD believes that the access to essential services for all the affected persons is a right.
3. Saving lives, better futures
We will be better, through a partnership with international organizations, at coordinating and delivering the water and sanitation, food, shelter and security that are needed in emergencies. MHD’s focus in the coming years will also include helping people to guard against future crises by becoming more resilient., establishing emergency responses locally, preparation is key. MHD will focus on the reinforcement of people’s rights to guard against the effects of disaster and to cope with emergencies, ensuring that all parts of society are part of the response. The focus for our longstanding role of providing essential services – such as WASH, FSL and education – is also shifting, to encourage self-managed local solutions. Yet again, it comes back to people knowing and exercising their rights and devising approaches that suit their own environment, whether urban or rural. Increasingly humanitarian response will need to address the needs of urban communities, in response to the huge changes in demographics which see for the first time ever. Work on resilience must include a focus on creating opportunities for young people whose future is threatened by the failure of the current generation of leaders to tackle unemployment and other problems blighting the lives of young people. Central to MHD’s work will be new ways of organizing at the local level for lasting resilience to crisis and poverty.
4. Accelerating action
We will join with networks of citizens, consumers, producers, communities, social movements and civil society organizations who demand change from the multilateral institutions, the United Nations,
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and companies. MHD will work with others, to help build momentum for change through Partnership and findings a new chances for developing the livelihood aspects to the affected communities.
Achieving the goal
The organization objectives will be achieved based on the strategy planning and through the following aspects;
1. Partnership:
The collaboration with the local and international institutions will be the main purpose to achieve vision and objectives of different projects activities. MHD believes that the cooperation with other actors for long-term approach will build the independence in the future and build the capacity to be used in the future and to ensure the self-resilience for the changes of the context and developments.
2. Theory of Change:
At the heart of MHD’s work is a theory of change that sees the interaction between local communities and accountable states as fundamental to human development. MHD mainly focuses on the first of these, helping to build the capacity of the communities of poor people, with a particular focus on women’s leadership and attitudes and beliefs concerning gender roles. But it also engages directly with the Local community, for example helping with training of local communities. Often, its main contribution is in the space and creating ‘safe zones’ in which they can discuss problems and solutions. Change is sometimes a smooth, steady process, but often emerges from ‘critical junctures’ – windows of opportunity provided by, changes in leadership, natural disasters or conflicts. MHD’s theory of change stresses the need to improve its ability to identify and respond to such moments. Improving our understanding of the turbulent and complex dynamics of change in the lives of poor people is at the heart of this strategic plan.
3. Selecting the Needed Programs:
Based on the local context and the recommendations of the donors, the programs will be selected for the affected communities. This will contribute in achieving the objectives of the organization which focus on the building the communities to be able to face the changes in during and after the conflict. For example, in term of emergency, lifesaving projects and others, in term of developments, transition from food security to livelihoods. This will be specified according to the partners and recommendations of the donors and the needs assessment in each community and location.
4. Communities Decision & Making Spaces:
Encourage women, young and indigenous people and other vulnerable people to influence and participate in decision-making processes that affect their lives. Also, promote social accountability tools such as participatory monitoring and sharing the communities in projects activities and suggestions for more improvements. MHD will share the local communities in all the level of projects cycle to ensure an effective communities participation.
5. SWOT Analysis:
A SWOT analysis is one of the most valuable tools in management stands for the Strengths and Weaknesses within the organization; plus factors outside the organization that offer Opportunities
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or pose Threats. It takes a section of our organization and consider it from these four points of view. And at the same time we are scanning the organization as it is at this one moment of time.
INTERNAL FACTORS |
STRENGTHS – What do we do well? – How do we know – do we have good targets and good ways of monitoring our progress towards the targets? |
WEAKNESSES – What could we do better? – What measures would demonstrate that we are now doing better? |
EXTERNAL FACTORS |
OPPORTUNITIES – What are the factors outside the NGO that could help us do better? |
THREATS – What are the factors outside the NGO that might be unhelpful to us doing better? |
The use of strategic planning is to transform the desired changes identified in the SWOT analysis, into clear objectives. This needs to happen in all layers of the organization and in all sectors. People need to be able to relate the objectives to their own work responsibilities.
6. Capacity Building:
The capacity building is one of the most important aspects in MHD which believes that reaching goals and objectives need a good capacity to be able to adapt with the changes in the context and in the needs of the targeted communities. The definition of needed capacity will be through SWOT analysis and according to the need of the projects activities. Human resources will be developed based on the capacity building plan for all the staff in Turkey and Syria.
7. Fundraising & Other Financial Resources:
The main target to MHD is the self-resilience against the changes of the context and humanitarian response. MHD targets to get funds and financial support through receiving donation from different parties international and private to be able to achieve its target. On the other hand, MHD is looking to develop methods for long-term support such as the production projects and long-term partnerships with governmental and non-governmental institution to be able to work at the same level after leaving the humanitarian actors to adapt with the changes and keep the same track in achieving the overall objectives. Also, there will campaigns for fundraising to different projects and activities to open the door to all civil community to get involved in the overall objective and humanitarian and development projects.
Implementation the Action Plan:
The next step is the implementation of the action plan. This a period in which will learn by doing, by discovery, by being confronted with problems, their causes and effects. If things go well, if staff members are motivated and are involved in the decision making, they will start feeling responsible for what they are doing, which will create ‘ownership’. The feeling of ownership is essential if staff members are to feel dedicated and believe in what they are doing.
Monitoring & Evolution:
The process of change needs continuous monitoring. We need to check if we are on the right road or if we have taken a wrong turn. If the results are not what we expected, things may go slowly, people lose motivation and action must be taken. A change process is like a child learning how to walk: falling and getting up again. Do not get discouraged, enjoy the positive outcomes and adapt our strategies on the negative ones. Monitoring is a continuous process for the duration of the project. It is an activity based on data collection. The knowledge and skills required for monitoring are the same as for assessment and analysis. Monitoring is essential in a changing situation. The purpose of monitoring is to find out whether the programme and activities are taking place on time, are effective, and whether strategies need to be adapted to ensure the best possible results. Equally important, Evaluation is an activity in itself. It is often the last part of a project or process but at the same time the beginning of the next phase, extension or new proposal. The purpose of the evaluation is to assess the actual results of an activity and its relevancy, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, Impact and lesson learnt with recommendations.
Review & Doing the needed change:
The strategy and the action plan will be review annually basis to see the overall impact of it in terms of changing, development, improvements and sustainability. On the other hand, to measure the effectives of the taken actions to reach the overall objective. Also to take the real decision in the real time to do the needed changes to adapt with the environmental changing and the changing of the context. The review will be on Board Council level to take any needed decision for doing revision or changes. MHD will keep reviewing its strategy and the taken action to ensure transparency, participation, involving, capacity building, real track and the sustainability.