The ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Reinforcing Institutional Capacity for Timely Food Security
Emergency Response to Slow Onset Crises at Scale
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Why do we need this?
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Research shows us that:
• Lack of clear and predictive livelihood and market
analysis, so responses aren’t appropriate or
adequate
• Contingency planning lacks a robust understanding
of livelihoods and markets, with few indicators about
who needs to act and when;
• Little formal response analysis takes place, and does
not focus on an overall analysis of needs;
• Traditional situation analysis begins post-shock, too
late to conduct a response analysis that enables
people to protect their livelihoods.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
What does the SRAF consist of?
Critical features of the Situation and Response Analysis Framework:
• SRAF is part of emergency preparedness and contingency planning.
• SRAF is an on-going process.
• SRAF addresses how interventions or the work of any single agency fits into
the larger picture of what other agencies, national governments and local
communities themselves are doing.
• SRAF causal factors as well as the outcomes themselves of any given
situation.
The SRAF was developed embracing the following approaches:
• Household Economic Analysis (HEA)
• Market system analysis
• Early analysis
• Repeated analysis
• Transparent analysis and planning
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
SRAF Objectives
SRAF is designed to support better short-term responses
to slow-onset food security crises.
Better means,
• Early: to protect assets
• Appropriate: to peoples livelihoods
• Proportionate: to need
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
ERC SRAF Guiding Principles
• Timing is Critical: we need to analyse, prepare and respond early
to protect lives and livelihoods
• Understanding people: it is necessary to understand livelihoods,
the markets they depend on and the impact of a crisis thereon
• Rapid Funding Mechanisms: understand the resources required,
to take appropriate action and release funds before a crisis peaks
• Responses based on need: supporting early, context-appropriate,
short-term responses to meet needs and mitigate impacts
• Repeat, repeat, repeat: response analysis must be iterative to be
relevant
• An adaptive framework: the framework can be used by
government, donors, UN agencies, NGOs
The Framework
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Monitoring of hazard, livelihood and market parameters
The traditional approach
Forecasts
of hazard
Shock
Needs
Assessment
Analysis
Planning
Action
Immediate Food Assistance
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
The SRAF
Monitoring of hazard, livelihood and market parameters
Contingency funds
Background review; historical data
Baseline
Assessment
Livelihood Assessment
Forecasts
of hazard
Market Assessment
Analysing the impact of different shocks;
quantify needs & geographic focus
Early Analysis
Develop Strategic Priorities
Update Scenarios &
Contingency Plan
Identify response options, start up times
and key milestones
Early Planning
Shock
Early Action
Engagement with communities,
government, donors, UN, NGOs and private
sector
Timely and appropriate humanitarian
assistance in the short-medium term
Reducing vulnerability and contributing to resilience building in the medium-long term
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
What this means: a timeline
Traditional Approach
Short Rains Assessment
Jan–Feb 2014
SHORT RAINS
Short Rains Forecast
Sep 2013
Sep 2013
Situation Analysis
Feb 2014
Nov – Dec 2013
Oct 2013
Nov 2013
Dec 2013
Jan 2014
Feb 2014
2 MONTH LEAD
The
SRAFSRAF
Response Lead
Response
March–April 2014
Mar 2014
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
When to use the SRAF
When and where the SRAF is valuable
Requirement for quantitative and detailed evidence for
interventions, responses, programme design is a priority.
Detailed data at household and local level is available to
conduct detailed analysis of food and income gap.
Participation of local stakeholders including government
is secured.
Contexts where shocks are repeated and predictable
through forecasts. Particularly slow onset crises such as
drought
Commitment to Technical prerequisites:
- HEA is available or will be conducted
- PCMMA is available or will be conducted
Programming aims to embrace principles of market based
approaches.
Funding commitment exists to a) repeatedly run the
response analysis and b) intervene early when evidence
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Baseline Assessments: the two pillars
Market
analysis
Livelihood
Analysis
Pre-crisis Market Mapping and Analysis (PCMMA)
Household Economy Analysis
Rapid Household Economy Analysis
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Pre-Crisis Market Mapping and Analysis
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
The Household Economy Approach
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
The HEA Dashboard
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Early Analysis Process
Step A: Map livelihoods calendar
Step B: Develop detailed scenario modelling
Early Analysis
Step C: Determine strategic objectives
Identify Hazard, Livelihoods And Market
Monitoring Parameters
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step A: Map Livelihoods Calendar
•
•
•
•
•
•
Changes in the quantities of households key sources of food, income and expenditure
Changes in the price of households key sources of food, income and expenditure
Changes in Non-food factors such as Water, Health, Nutrition, Education
Changes in Prices and Quantities used as an input for developing scenarios in Step B
Changes in Non-food factors are used to develop Strategic Objectives in Step C
Changes in Market Chain, Market Environment and Infrastructure and Services
CASE STUDY: Marsabit Water Access
One of the scenarios considered during a Response Analysis workshop in Marsabit, Kenya in October
2013 was “Below Average Short Rains” in November and December.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step B: Develop detailed scenarios
• To quickly model the impact of a forecast hazard you will need to use the HEA
Dashboard for the rapid development of quantified scenarios in the SRAF.
o The population of the Livelihood Zones
o Projected Changes in Prices and Quantities from the Crisis Calendar developed
in Step A
o Price Data for the Reference Year
• The projected changes in household’s sources of food, income and expenditure can
be summarized in the Key Parameters template.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step C: Determine Strategic Objectives
Using the results worksheet of your HEA Dashboard developed in Step B, you should
develop strategic objectives that address the projected needs in the scenario developed
in Step B. These projected needs can be different for different wealth groups and
whether
they
face aforsurvival
livelihoods
deficit. of Highland & Midland Zones
Table
1: Scenarios
May 2014 or
- April
2015: Total Population
Scenario 1: Poor Rains
Wealth
Group
Very Poor
Poor
Middle
BetterOff
Scenario 2: Food Prices Increases (100%)
TOTAL
Very Poor
Survival Deficit
Population
facing a Deficit
HH Deficit
Total Deficit
Poor
Total Deficit
IPC
MLL
Phase:
IPC
HLA
Phase:
95,000
0
0
0
95,000
95,000
335,000
0
0
430,000
0
0
0
13,000 HH
13,000 HH
48,000 HH
0
0
61,000 HH
YER 85,000
0
0
0
YER 57,000
YER 30,000
0
0
£3m
0
0
0
£3m
£2m
£4m
0
0
0
YER
1,160m
YER 780m
YER 1,410m
0
0
95,000
335,000
0
0
430,000
0
0
61,000 HH
13,000 HH
48,000 HH
YER 15,000
YER 7,000
£40
£20
£600,000
0
0
£950,000
0
0
£1.5m
YER 225m
YER 345m
0
0
YER 570m
4
2
1
1
1
1
Ve
95,000
0
YE
£ 6m
YER 2,190m
335,000
0
0
430,000
0
0
61,000 HH
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
13,000 HH
48,000 HH
YER 10,000
YER 10,000
£400k
£1.3m
YER 135m
YER 485m
3
3
£4.5m
1
0
13
Y
Livelihood Deficit
2
1
1
1
TOTAL
Survival Deficit
Livelihood Deficit
HH Deficit
Better
-Off
13,000 HH
YER 1,160m
Population
facing a Deficit
Middle
grey shading indicates a deficit of less than 1 month
1
1
1
1
YE
£1.7m
YER 620m
£7.7m
3
1
13
Y
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Early Planning Process
Step D: Select appropriate interventions
Step E: Identify agency priorities and parameters
Early Planning
Step F: Map start-up timelines and prepare
Communicate to partners, communities and donors
Monitor hazard, livelihood and market parameters
– and refine models and update plans
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step D: Select Appropriate Interventions
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step E: Identify Agency Priorities and Parameters
Using the selected interventions, analyse what your agency has implement over the
past 3 or 4 years, and what is currently being implemented by other agencies in the
area.
Objective and Interventions

Agency
Strategic Partner
To protect prime shoats from loss or stress sales (prime breeding stocks) of 65,000 very poor
and poor Agro-pastoralists for 6 months (November to April)
1. Livestock feeding

1. Livestock vaccination campaigns

1. Strategic deworming

1. Destocking

1. Support District Veterinary office in management 
and treatment of livestock diseases
1. Provision of water for the livestock

ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Step F: Map Start-Up Timelines and Prepare
The first step in mapping your start-up timelines and decision dates is to identify the
“windows of opportunity” for the interventions that you have selected for your agency.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Responses that are sustainable and foster resilient livelihoods
through ongoing protection, promotion and adaptation
Early Action Process
React to changes in hazard, livelihood and market
parameter data and re-run modelling
Use timelines for decision-making processes
Early Action
Feed into IPC technical working groups/clusters
Implement range of timely and appropriate
interventions
Monitor impact of activities
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
SRAF and Responding to System Challenges
Discussions with operational agencies, donors and Governments revealed
that improvements in livelihood analysis and contingency planning would not
lead directly to early response. Early response were constrained by a series of
‘systems problems’:
• Local Consensus about Livelihoods and vulnerability
• Early Funding
• Local Coordination
• Agency Preparedness
• Flexible long-term funding
• Early warning: predictive and analytical
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
SRAF and Responding to System Challenges
• Coordination:
o The SRAF sits alongside and complements Early Warning / Early Action
systems, providing predictive and timely analysis where missing and
providing alternative analysis where EW/EA is absent
• Funding
o The SRAF can provide an ideal mechanism for determining when to
release these crisis modifier funds – and where to target them.
o Where early funding is not available the SRAF can provide practical,
programmatic evidence that can be used to support advocacy for early
funding.
• Implementation plans
o The SRAF process is to understand the windows of opportunity, the
operations and funding start-up times and to work backwards, to
understand what are the key decision points for the timely
implementation of certain interventions.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
SRAF and Responding to System Challenges
SRAF in action
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
Pilots and Results: RA, Yemen, June 2014
• Save the Children is implementing a two-year, £10 million DFID funded
project, using the Response Analysis process to prepare a Crisis Modifier
Operational Plan (CMOP) for two governorates.
• The process revealed that the £500,000 Crisis Modifier fund would be too
low to meet needs the scenario of a food price increase.
Project Beneficiaries
Non Beneficiaries
(Very Poor Households)
Non Beneficiaries (Poor
Households)
Crisis Modifier Budget
Scenario 1: Poor
Rains
£50,000
£250,000
Scenario 2: Food
Prices Increases
0
£130,000
Scenario 3: Political
Conflict
0
£50,000
0
£550,000
£350,000
£300,000
£680,000
£400,000
• The SRAF can therefore contribute to the design of longer-term livelihoods
programs by helping to identify the vulnerability of specific populations to
common hazards.
ERC Situation and Response Analysis Framework
HTTP://WWW.SRAF-GUIDELINES.ORG/