Local and national humanitarian actors (LNAs) are often the first and last responders during a crisis, yet they continue to operate within a system that systematically underfunds their safety, organisational health and sustainability.

In recognition of this chronic underfunding, international humanitarian actors came together in 2016 to collectively and publicly commit to ensuring LNAs are better resourced. Increasing the quantity and quality of funding for overheads (also known as indirect cost recovery (ICR)) for LNAs is central to this broader commitment.

Overheads are not peripheral administrative costs. They fund the essential infrastructure that enables principled humanitarian action: programme quality and continuity between grants, staff retention, duty of care, safety and security, compliance, coordination, and the organisational resilience required to respond rapidly and responsibly. As Maliha Fairooz from the Feminist Humanitarian Network notes, ‘Overheads are part of the heartbeat of feminist humanitarian organising… This is not extra. This is the work.’

Report by the Overseas Development Institute