Calls to decolonise international assistance, including humanitarian policy and practice, have gained prominence in recent years, although progress has been slow against the tremendous task of dismantling the power hierarchies and structural racism that characterise the sector. 

When it comes to research, more just partnerships between Global North-based research centres and organisations in crisis settings of the Global South – that is, partnerships that acknowledge the politics of knowledge production and centre principles of inclusion, reflexivity, ethical practice and shared expertise – are one piece of this vast puzzle.

These papers form part of a two-year research project, Partnering for a localised humanitarian research agenda. That project saw researchers from HPG and Neem Foundation – a leading humanitarian response organisation based in Abuja, Nigeria – form a partnership, starting from a blank slate to deliver a research project based on shared objectives, expertise and skills.

Report by the Overseas Development Institute