Session 2.2.2: Humanitarian negotiation
Learning objectives
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:


Describe useful approaches and skills for negotiation in a humanitarian situation
Practise negotiation skills and tactics
Timing and methods
Method
1. Presentation and discussion
2. Action planning
3. Role-plays
4. Plenary discussion
Content
Principles of humanitarian negotiation
Planning a negotiation
Negotiation in action
Report back and conclusion
Total
Time
20
15
45
10
90
Resources needed
Files
PowerPoint 2.2.2 or flipcharts*
Workbook pages #34-40
Attachment 1 Humanitarian negotiation
Attachment 2 Negotiation scenarios
Equipment and supplies
NA
* Review and adapt the PowerPoint or prepare flipcharts with the essential content in advance of the session
Preparation


Familiarise yourself with the material on humanitarian negotiation at Attachment 1.
Review the scenarios at Attachment 1 and select the three most appropriate to your
context. Create new scenarios if necessary.
Key messages



Humanitarian workers regularly have to negotiate – with warring parties,
communities, local officials, donors, other agencies, other staff and others.
Humanitarian negotiation differs in several ways from generic negotiations:
o Humanitarians may not be welcomed by warring parties that are determined
to win their fight at all costs and are suspicious of outsiders
o Humanitarians lack power over the territory and people they want to assist
and protect and whether negotiations take place often depends on their
counterparts’ willingness. In these instances, persuasion is the way forward
o Persuasion involves many of the same activities as negotiation and good
negotiators are usually also good persuaders
Principled negotiation is useful for humanitarian situations. Issues are decided on by
their merits, with the goal being a win-win situation. The four steps of a principled
negotiation are: i) separate the people from the problem – build rapport, ii) focus on
interests, not positions – understand motivations and interests, iii) invent options for
mutual gain and iv) insist on using objective criteria.
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
1

Negotiation builds on the influencing skills and approaches seen in session 2.2.1.
Instructions
Activity 1: Negotiation and discussion – Principles of humanitarian negotiation
20 mins
Introduce the
session and its
objectives
1 min
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:
 Describe useful approaches and skills for negotiation in a
humanitarian situation
 Practise negotiation skills and tactics
Highlight that this session builds on the previous session on influencing
people. In this session, we will see how influencing skills can be put into
practice in the context of humanitarian negotiation.
Explain
‘humanitarian
negotiation’
5 mins
Show Slide #3 and explain the following definition of negotiation:



Discuss
participant’s
experience with
negotiation
2 mins
Negotiation is a process of communication between two or more
parties regarding their competing or conflicting interests
It is a mechanism that allows all parties to achieve their interests
and overcome an initial situation of real or potential conflict
Negotiation is necessary when a contentious issue needs to be
resolved and all parties have something to gain from the
exchange of views
Ask participants:
 When do you need to negotiate in your job?
 When have we used negotiation as part of this course?
 What skills do you use when you are negotiating?
Relate to examples seen in the previous session on influencing people.
Summarise by explaining that:
 Humanitarian workers regularly have to negotiate – with warring
parties, communities, local officials, donors, other agencies,
other staff and others
 Negotiation skills are therefore critically important for
humanitarian leaders
Show Slide #4 to highlight the skills needed in negotiation:
 Planning and organising
 Observation and listening
 Patience and perseverance
 Ability to develop rapport and empathy
 Flexibility
 Creativity
 Analysis and strategic skills
Discuss
Ask participants: What makes negotiating in a humanitarian context
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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negotiating in a
humanitarian
context
2 mins
different to negotiation in other contexts?
Discuss key
principles of
and skills for
negotiation
5 mins
Ask participants: What is meant by a win/win solution?
Take suggestions and share any of the following points if not already
mentioned:
 Humanitarian negotiations are different from generic negotiations
because of humanitarian principles and the other actors involved
 Finding a win/win solution is very important – our principles often
mean we can’t compromise, but we also don’t have much power
 For example, humanitarians may not be welcomed by warring
parties that are determined to win their fight at all costs.
Humanitarians lack power over the territory and people they want
to assist and protect and whether negotiations take place often
depends on their counterparts’ willingness
 In these instances, persuasion is the way forward. Persuasion
involves many of the same activities as negotiation and good
negotiators are usually also good persuaders
Share an example of a win/win solution (e.g. the story of the orange –
see background reading).
Next, ask: So what do we need to do in to reach a win/win solution?
Brainstorm answers on a flipchart with participants.
Make sure that the following key points come out and highlight them:
 Separate the people from the problem – it is important to build
rapport quickly and ensure you show respect for the other party
 To get to a win/win solution, you need to uncover the underlying
motivations (interests) of the other party
 To understand interests, you need to know the reality of your
situation and your context (based on a good contextual and
stakeholder analysis – as per previous sessions)
 Invent options for mutual gain
 Insist on using objective criteria
 Know what you can trade and absolutely what you cannot trade
– decide in advance what you want to achieve and what your
best alternative is (BATNA – see workbook reading)
 All of this means you need to plan in advance to analyse the
situation and decide on the best negotiation strategy
Discuss
interests vs
positions
5 mins
Emphasise that:
 It is very important to understand the difference between
positions and interests. Positions are what we think the solution
is or the decision should be. Interests are our underlying
motivations
Show Slides #5-6 and share the following two examples with
participants and ask them to identify potential interests:
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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a) You arrive at a checkpoint and the soldier demands a bribe. This is
his position. What are his possible interests?
His potential interests could be:
 respect for him as a soldier
 his reputation among his colleagues
 adhering to policy set by his superiors – which could mean
his job
 a basic need such as the need to feed his family
b) You are negotiating with the government because you need to gain
access to 15 villages where IDPs have just arrived. This is your
position. What are your interests?
Your potential interests could be:
 moral interest – humanitarian principles
 organisation’s reputation with community, donor, public
 personal reputation within team or recognition for
performance
Activity 2: Action planning – planning a negotiation
15 mins
Small group
work –
negotiation
planning
15 mins
Organise participants into six groups of 3-4 people by any method.
Explain that participants are now going to plan for and then practise a
negotiation (Slide #7).
Allocate one scenario to each group (each scenario is allocated
twice).
The facilitator should invite any participants that are not comfortable
role-playing the scenario to observe or join a group with a different
scenario.
Instruct participants to spend 15 minutes planning for their negotiation,
using the planning guide in their workbook on page #36, considering
their own positions and interests and those of the other party.
While teams are planning, choose a few participants to role-play ‘the
other parties’ for other groups and brief them on the role they should
play. Choose good actors with a good understanding of local
stakeholders. Alternatively, the facilitators can also play the ‘other party’.
Activity 3: Role-plays – humanitarian negotiations
45 mins
Negotiation
role-plays
1 min
Role-play the negotiations, allowing 5-10 minutes for each one
depending on the number of groups and facilitators you have. You can
use the following options:
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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


Run 1-2 negotiations as ‘fishbowl’ exercises where everyone
else watches on and then have the rest of the groups practise
their negotiations individually – with participants from the first
groups being the ‘other parties’ for the rest of the groups
Run two parallel sessions, one facilitator with each, and each
group role-playing one after the other (ie 2x3 role plays)
Keep the role-plays very short and run all of them in front of the
plenary, one after the other.
Quickly debrief each role play, using the following questions:
 What agreements were reached? What is the current
agreement?
 What were the interests and needs of each side?
 How well did each party listen to and understand the other’s
objections?
 What tactics were especially effective?
 What tactics were ineffective?
 Identify any missed opportunities for a breakthrough?
 Did anyone create a win/win situation?
Note that a competitive approach would not yield the optimal win/win
solution. If a participant insists that it did in their case, ask them to
describe their solution – if there is any hint of a ‘pay-off’ (we paid him off)
or a compromise (we agreed to split the ‘oranges’), suggest that this is
not an optimal win/win as we are defining it.
Note that if a group is not making progress in its negotiation, then offer
something to help (an opportunity they can take advantage of, or
advice).
Activity 5: Plenary
10 mins
Plenary
discussion and
conclusion
10 mins
Use the final 10 minutes of the session to discuss key learning points in
plenary. Ask:
 What are the key things you learned from what you saw in these
scenarios?
 What will you keep in mind or do differently next time you have to
negotiate?
 What questions do you have?
Refer participants to the workbook page #37-39 for more information.
Conclude the session by highlighting:
 The importance of negotiation in many contexts of their work –
including security-related issues, negotiating with communities
and within their own organisations and peers (highlight the key
points in the competency framework)
 The connections between the content seen in earlier sessions of
contextual analysis, stakeholder analysis, influencing skills and
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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negotiation – and flag that these skills are also critical for risk
management, which we will see soon
Attachments
Attachment 1: Humanitarian negotiation1
1. What is negotiation?
Negotiation is a process of communication between two or more parties regarding their
competing or conflicting interests. It is a mechanism that allows all parties to achieve their
interests and overcome an initial situation of real or potential conflict. Negotiation is
employed when a contentious issue needs to be resolved and all parties have something to
gain from the interaction and exchange of views.
2. Myths, misconceptions and common mistakes in negotiation
As individuals and as humanitarians, we are frequently required to negotiate. However, few
of us have been trained in negotiation, so we rely on improvised skills and competencies,
some of which may be based on myths and misconceptions. Some common myths about
negotiation are discussed below.

Myth 1: Good negotiators are born that way. Nothing could be further from the
truth. While some people seem to have a natural aptitude for effective negotiating,
most good negotiators have learned these skills through practise and over time. You
can learn to be a good negotiator too!

Myth 2: Experience is a great teacher on its own. Experience can be a great
teacher, but only if you review your experiences and mistakes carefully and draw
lessons learned from them. Simply having gone through a difficult negotiation does
not necessarily prepare you for future negotiations. You must also be open to
learning and to trying out new skills in future negotiations.

Myth 3: Good negotiators can improvise. Good negotiators do not take risks in a
“cavalier” fashion. The best negotiators are well prepared and generally have good
reasons for their actions. Negotiators may take an action that is unlikely to succeed,
but only after having thought it through and weighed it against the alternatives.

Myth 4: Good negotiators rely on intuition. Relying on intuition alone is a
dangerous and careless way to approach a negotiation. Good negotiators are aware
of the emotional and rational elements of their personalities, and they make decisions
based on both of these two factors, rather than on intuition.
3. What skills make a good negotiator?
The following are skills that you should cultivate if you wish to improve your ability to
negotiate:
11
Taken from ‘Introduction to Humanitarian Negotiation’ pages 14 – 17 UNHCR eCentre Essentials of
Humanitarian Negotiation Workshop (accessed 14th January 2011)
http://www.the-ecentre.net/resources/workshop/materials/194/EHN%20Participant%20Guide.pdf
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
6
Planning and organising. This skill helps you to set out in detail what you expect to
achieve from the negotiations, and to become aware of your own limits.
Observation and listening skills. These skills will help you keep track of what happens in
the negotiation room. Your negotiating abilities will be enhanced when you are able to listen
to what your negotiation counterparts say, observe actions as well as nuances and body
language which carry indirect messages, and remember details that will be useful to you in
the negotiation.
Patience and perseverance. These two skills will help you identify and select the
appropriate time and approach to remove hurdles rather than giving up. Both imply an ability
to recognise when arguments are pointlessly going round in circles, identify the barriers and
work systematically through them.
Ability to develop rapport and empathy. Good negotiators have the skills and ability to
quickly establish and maintain a constructive relationship with the negotiation counterpart.
This involves solid communication and enquiry skills and a genuine appreciation for the
feelings of the other, without losing one’s own unique viewpoint or attention to the desired
outcome.
Flexibility. This is important to help accept the viewpoints and arguments of others without
giving in on the issues that are critical to you.
Creativity. In negotiation, the ability to think “outside the box” is critical to come up with
options and solutions that can address all interests at stake. This implies the courage to look
at things from a completely new perspective.
Analysis and strategic skills. This implies the ability to prepare solid arguments and to
anticipate your counterpart’s objections.
In his treatise on “The Art of War”, strategist Sun Tzu, born in the fifth century BC, identified
several other skills and abilities for winning against an “enemy”. Among these, he mentions
the “supreme excellence” which allows good strategists to “break the enemy’s resistance
without fighting”. While he wrote the treaty some 25 centuries ago, many of his
considerations are still applicable today and can be used to improve negotiators’ selfawareness and strategic skills.
4. Getting prepared to negotiate
There are several important steps in preparing for a negotiation situation. These include (1)
analysing the conflict, (2) determining your own best alternative to a negotiated agreement
(BATNA), and (3) identifying the best negotiation strategy to use in a given situation.
Understanding the context: a framework for analysis
The following factors all affect a conflict situation and the negotiation that takes place to
resolve it: the parties, the issues, the dynamics, the history, the context, and other factors.
CONFLICT CONTEXT - What is the history of the conflict, what are the physical and
organisational settings, and how will these impact the negotiation?
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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PARTIES - Whom would you designate as the primary and secondary parties to the
negotiation? On what basis have you designated them primary or secondary?
CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES - What are the causes and the consequences of the
conflict, and how do they affect the negotiation? (For example, how do identity or cultural
differences contribute to the conflict and affect the negotiation?)
GOALS AND INTERESTS - What are the primary and secondary goals and interests of the
parties?
DYNAMICS - What dynamics, such as race, gender, culture, and power, have an impact on
the negotiation? How is their impact demonstrated?
FUNCTIONS - What are the positive aspects of the conflict for the parties? For example,
tension release, media coverage, visibility, or solidarity.
OPTIONS - What options are available to resolve each issue in the negotiation?
CRITERIA - What external criteria can be used to help the parties reach an agreement?
ALTERNATIVES - What are the alternatives, away from the table, for the respective parties
(BATNA)?
THIRD SIDE - Is there a “Third Side” in this situation and how can it help? The “Third Side”
is the community members surrounding the parties, and who have an interest in helping to
peacefully resolve the conflict. (Adapted from Paul Wehr’s “Conflict Mapping”, Conflict
Research Consortium, University of Colorado, USA)
Determining your best alternative to a negotiated agreement (BATNA)
Having gained a good understanding of the context of the conflict, the second step in
preparing for a successful negotiation is to identify your “Best Alternative To a Negotiated
Agreement,” commonly known in negotiation literature as your BATNA. This is the best
alternative you have away from the negotiation table.
The reason you negotiate is to obtain something better than the results you would produce
without negotiation. So what are those results? In other words, what will you do if you do not
reach agreement? This is your BATNA, or the standard against which you should measure
any potential agreement.
Together with the information gathered through conflict analysis, good awareness of your
BATNA can help you weigh up any offer and make informed decisions. In addition, knowing
your BATNA can greatly strengthen your negotiation power.
Win/win situation – the story of the orange
The classic negotiation story of the orange: two sisters are fighting over an orange. Both
adamantly want the orange. However, when a parent separates them and finds out why they
want the orange, one sister says she wants to make juice and the other wants to use the rind
for cooking. There you have a situation where the interests of the sisters have nothing in
common. Each can get exactly what she wanted and have a win/win situation.
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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Attachment 2: Negotiation role-play scenarios
1. Negotiate with a family at the entrance to a refugee camp. They want to enter but are
fearful of enemies inside the camp. The head of the family insists that he be allowed
to keep his gun to protect his sick wife and their baby. The family is also terrified of
becoming separated.
2. Negotiate with a donor as new information has just shown a more severely affected
village which no other NGO has plans to work with. You need more money because
this will be additional work.
3. Negotiate with the village leader who is refusing to distribute food which he had
previously said was possible. You are the Humanitarian Coordinator and it was one
of your team who previously met with the village leader and gained agreement. They
have now left the project. You only have three hours to sort this out before the food
trucks arrive.
4. International media want to access the IDP camp/ visit the communities of affected
people. This is inappropriate because of recent security issues and current distrust of
'outsiders'.
5. At a meeting with the Government about international funding to which you have
been invited, you need to tell the Government that you and other agencies find that
they have not been supportive enough of NGOs and have strongly resisted
international efforts to manage the ongoing conflict and work on the severe food
insecurity problems.
6. Negotiate with donor to receive more money because of influx of more people.
7. HQ informs you to expect your Chief Executive and team to arrive next week for a
visit. This is not appropriate as your team is at full stretch and there is a food
distribution planned for that time.
Session Guide 2.2.2 Humanitarian negotiation
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