The need for more comprehensive and coherent responses to address today’s interconnected challenges is widely recognised, for instance by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the sustaining peace agenda. Strong alignment with these larger efforts is essential for accelerating progress toward these broader objectives while also maximising the value for money, impact and sustainability of explosive risk reduction programmes.
The GICHD's policy work strengthens the connection between explosive risk reduction and broader agendas, stimulating reflections and influencing the sector’s response to a constantly changing policy and operational landscape. The complexity of contamination in current conflicts, humanitarian access, gender equality as well as the relevance of development, ecological and good governance considerations are prominent issues addressed by the Centre's policy work.
Another dimension of GICHD’s policy work consists in building up and sharing evidence on the impact of certain types of conventional weapons as a contribution to informed discussions and processes taking place at an international level. For example, the GICHD is documenting the humanitarian and developmental impact of anti-vehicle mines; a weapon type which is still poorly regulated.
The innovative and evidence-based research undertaken by the GICHD relies on strong partnerships with a variety of actors involved in humanitarian, development and peace processes efforts.
GICHD’s policy work contributes to the strategy outcome 10 (“International normative and policy processes are informed by evidence) and strategy outcome 11 (“The reduction of risks from explosive ordnance contributes to humanitarian action and sustainable development”).