Hello.

My name is Ms. Ikomi and I am a teacher from London.

I'm going to be taking you through today's lesson, so let's get started.

Today's lesson is called "What is the role of NGOs in responding to international crises?" It is part of the wider unit "How does the international community respond to global humanitarian problems?" By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to explain the role of non-governmental organisations in responding to international crises.

As today's topics could be seen as sensitive, we're going to discuss some ground rules for taking part in this lesson.

First of all, it's important to listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, it's important that we challenge the statement, not the person.

We must respect privacy.

We can discuss examples in a general sense, but please do not use names or descriptions that identify anyone, including yourself.

We listen without passing judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

And last, you can choose your level of participation.

Everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question or join in with a discussion.

We'll never put anyone on the spot.

Let's get started.

The keywords we're going to hear in today's lesson are NGO.

This is a non-profit, voluntary group that works locally, nationally, or internationally to achieve a specific aim.

NGOs are independent from governments but often work alongside them.

Humanitarian assistance.

This is providing help and support during emergencies such as natural disasters or conflicts.

Social justice.

This is a system where everyone has equal rights, opportunities and access to resources, regardless of their background or identity.

We're going to begin by thinking about what is an NGO? An NGO, as we can remember from our keyword definition, is a non-governmental organisation.

NGOs operate independently from any government and they don't aim to make a profit.

They work to provide humanitarian assistance, promote social justice, or address political issues.

NGOs can be local, national, or international.

Some examples of NGOs that you might have heard of are Amnesty International.

This is an international NGO that is concerned with addressing human rights.

The Refugee Council.

This is a UK-based NGO addressing refugee rights.

NGOs use a wide range of strategies to achieve their aims. The way they work depends on the situation they are responding to and the goals of their specific organisation.

Andeep's telling us, "I was watching TV and an advert appeared for the Disaster Emergency Committee.

The DEC was coordinating how different NGOs responded to the Myanmar earthquake.

The advert was raising awareness and also trying to encourage donations from the public." We can see an example here of one way that an NGO may work to respond to a particular situation, such as an earthquake or natural disaster.

Let's do a quick check of what we've learned so far.

What does the "G" stand for in NGO? Is it A, global? B, govern? Or C, governmental? Pause your video and choose your answer now.

The correct answer is C.

Even though NGOs are independent from governments, they might still receive funding from them.

Sometimes, NGOs do work that overlaps with the work and priorities of the government.

So therefore, it might make sense for them to support them financially.

For example, both the UK Government and Oxfam both work to reduce poverty.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office may provide funding to Oxfam to carry out some of this work because they may have particular expertise or connections in this area.

Laura is telling us further about this example.

"Oxfam works in countries which experience issues with poverty.

One thing they do is build wells so people have access to clean water.

That's a form of humanitarian assistance." Alex is telling us that "Some of this work is funded by the FCDO, who have an overseas development budget." So we can see where there might be a crossover.

Let's do another check.

We're trying to answer the question, which department might fund NGOs like Oxfam? Andeep says, "I think it's the Foreign and Commonwealth Office that gives money to Oxfam to help tackle poverty." Do you think Andeep is correct? Pause your video and see if you can correct his answer.

Andeep is not quite correct.

He hasn't got the name of the department quite right.

It is actually the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Let's do a longer task now to put into practise what we've done so far.

I'd like you to review the information below provided about government departments.

Complete the table by outlining the difference between the government department and an NGO in this particular area.

Pause your video and have a go at this now.

Let's check our answers.

We're going to go down the NGO boxes.

An NGO is not a government department.

Therefore, it is different to the UK Government.

The UK Government is led by elected politicians with the support of civil servants.

However, NGOs are voluntary groups.

The UK Government is funded by taxpayers' money.

However, NGOs may receive funding from the government and also via charitable activities like fundraising.

And lastly, government departments have a wide range of aims with a specific remit, for example, education.

Whereas NGOs have a specific remit, for example, social justice, but they might work across a range of different countries.

Next, we're going to think about how do NGOs respond in international crises? In an international crisis, it can be difficult or politically sensitive for governments to intervene directly.

It might be seen as them taking sides.

Instead, they often work with NGOs to help provide humanitarian assistance.

Equally, in an international crisis, governments may not necessarily have the skill or resource to respond effectively.

They therefore fund an NGO to undertake the lifesaving work as they may have particular expertise in this area.

Let's do a quick check.

I'd like you to identify and correct the errors in the following statements.

Governments don't need NGOs because they can intervene in international crises themselves without consequences.

And the government is very skilled in everything they do, so they don't need NGOs.

They can do it themselves.

Pause your video now and try and fix these sentences.

The corrected answers read.

Governments do need NGOs because intervening directly in international crises can have political consequences.

NGOs have specific skills and resources, so governments often work with or fund them to carry out humanitarian assistance.

Save the Children is an NGO that works worldwide to support children.

They provide humanitarian assistance and run longer-term projects, such as education programmes.

According to Save the Children, as of June 2025, the conflict in Gaza has killed over 18,000, while over 14,000 more children face severe risks such as malnutrition due to restrictions on the delivery of aid.

When Hamas and Israel agreed to temporary pause in fighting between 19th of January and 18th of March 2025, Save the Children provided aid to over 51,000 people.

This included by distributing winter clothing, organising food parcels for 23,000 people, and vaccinating 1,341 children against polio.

Let's do a quick check.

Which of these is work that has been undertaken by Save the Children in Gaza? Is it A, vaccinated over 1,000 children against polio? B, built emergency roads to improve transport access? Or C, repaired damaged telecommunications networks? Pause your video and choose your answer now.

Here.

The correct answer is A.

In a major international crisis, NGOs do not work alone.

They often collaborate with other organisations to respond effectively.

One organisation they might work with is the World Health Organisation, the WHO.

The World Health Organisation is a United Nations agency.

That means that they are deployed by the United Nations.

The WHO works globally on public health.

In a crisis, the WHO may coordinate the health response and work alongside NGOs and governments.

An example of how this works can be seen in Sudan.

Since April 2023, Sudan has experienced intense fighting from the civil war.

This has led to displacement of people and significant humanitarian issues.

The conflict has led to a major health crisis.

Nearly three quarters of health facilities are not in service.

Two thirds of the population lack access to healthcare.

And diseases such as cholera, measles and malaria are spreading.

The WHO are working to coordinate the health response by carrying out disease surveillance.

That means checking and monitoring outbreaks of deadly diseases.

Distributing lifesaving medical supplies to people in need.

And also working closely with the health authorities in host countries to provide healthcare to those people who have been displaced.

Medecins Sans Frontieres, which means Doctors Without Borders, is another NGO that delivers emergency medical care around the world.

MSF often use WHO guidelines and coordinate with them during large-scale emergencies.

In Sudan, the Medecins Sans Frontieres have treated patients wounded in the conflict, provided humanitarian assistances and aid, provided medical care in refugee camps where people may be living, provided over 194,000 emergency-room consultants, treated nearly over 59,000 malnutrition cases, treated over 174,000 malaria cases, and have also supported displaced people with mobile clinics.

You can see a picture of the Medecins Sans Frontiere logo on the slide there.

Let's do another check.

What is wrong with this statement? Medecins Sans Frontieres and the World Health Organisation are both NGOs, and they do the same kind of work in a crisis.

Laura is asking you to think about who runs the WHO and how the MSF responds in this crisis.

Pause your video and think about what's wrong with this statement now.

The problem with the statement is that the WHO is a UN agency, not an NGO.

And Medecins Sans Frontieres is an NGO that works with the WHO during crises.

So it's not quite correct.

Let's do a longer task to put into practise what we've done so far.

I'd like you to explain how NGOs respond to an international crisis.

In your answer, you could include some examples of recent international crises, what kind of help or support the NGO might have provided, and how the NGO worked with other organisations.

Pause your video and have a go at this now.

I asked you to explain how NGOs respond in an international crisis.

You might have said.

During the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the NGO Save the Children responded to the crisis by supporting children affected by the conflict.

For example, they gave out winter clothing and food parcels.

During a pause in the fighting, they vaccinated 1,341 children against polio to stop the spread of disease.

During the conflict in Sudan, the World Health Organisation helped by coordinating the health response.

They delivered lifesaving medical supplies, monitored disease outbreaks, and supported health services for people displaced.

NGOs like Medecins Sans Frontieres work directly with WHO by using their guidelines and sharing information about disease outbreaks.

This shows how NGOs and the WHO work together.

The WHO helps coordinate the response, while NGOs provide expert, frontline care.

Last, we're going to think about are NGOs effective in a humanitarian crisis? Izzy is asking a really important question.

She's saying, "NGOs work in some of the most dangerous places on Earth! How do we know that their work is effective?" Lots of NGOs are effective in saving lives during emergencies and supporting longer-term recovery and development.

However, their impact can vary depending on the crisis and the challenges they face.

So, Izzy's question is very valid.

What features might make NGOs effective in responding to humanitarian crises? Can you have a short think about this now? Some features that might make an NGO effective include the following.

They're flexible and adaptable.

That means that they can change their approach as situations evolve.

They build grassroots support by working directly with the communities affected, meaning that they have a really good understanding of people's needs and concerns on the ground.

They raise awareness to help people understand the crisis and encourage support that might be on a local, national, or even global scale.

Izzy is asking, "What does this actually look like in real life?" The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, is an NGO focused on children's rights.

Part of their work includes training young people to be champions in their communities.

This grassroots work helps young people to find solutions to problems that they face and influence adults to support them in that change.

It raises awareness and has helped improve children's rights around the world.

Let's do a check.

What do we call direct work with communities? Is it A, grassroots? B, plant roots? Or C, tree roots? Pause your video and choose an answer.

The correct answer is A.

Izzy's asking, "What are some of the limitations of NGOs? And why might some people argue that they're not very effective?" NGOs also face challenges and these limit their effectiveness.

For example, they rely on fundraising, so they might not always have enough money to do their work.

Some NGOs do similar work to one another, so that might lead to duplication of efforts, so it may not be super efficient.

Occasionally, there are concerns about how some NGOs manage their funds or show accountability.

"What does this look like in real life?" Sometimes, concerns about how NGOs operate can lead to serious consequences.

In 2021, the UK Government paused funding for the NGO Oxfam after serious safeguarding allegations about the aid workers who were carrying out work in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Since the funding pause in 2021, Oxfam has had major changes to improve how it keeps people safe, including appointing a national safeguarding advisor in the Democratic Republic of Congo, setting up a network of safeguarding experts across offices, and also training staff on how to report concerns.

Because of these changes, the UK Government now allows Oxfam to apply for aid funding again, even though they had had a pause.

This shows how NGOs can respond to criticisms and make changes to improve their effectiveness and increase accountability.

Let's do a check.

Why did the UK Government pause funding for Oxfam in 2021? Is it A, Oxfam stopped working in the UK? B, Oxfam failed to respond to a natural disaster? C, there were safeguarding concerns in the Democratic Republic of Congo? Or is it D, Oxfam merged with another charity? Pause your video and choose your answer.

The correct answer is C.

Let's do another task to put into practise what we've done so far.

I would like you to evaluate this statement above.

"Only a government department can effectively deal with a humanitarian crisis." I'd like you to try and use the following structure.

First, arguments for the statement.

Then, arguments against the statement.

Acknowledging limitations or challenges.

And finishing with a conclusion.

I'd like you to use examples within your evaluation.

Pause your video and have a go at completing this task now.

I asked you to evaluate the statement that "only a government department can effectively deal with a humanitarian crisis." You might have said.

Some people agree with the statement because governments have large budgets funded by taxpayers and can increase spending during emergencies.

They are led by elected officials and civil servants, which means they're accountable for how public money is used.

For example, the UK Government has funded NGOs like Oxfam to deliver aid, showing that governments often support humanitarian work, even if they don't always deliver it directly.

However, others argue that the NGOs may be effective in a crisis.

NGOs are often more flexible and can respond quickly as situations change.

For example, Save the Children provided food parcels, winter clothing and vaccinations during a pause in the conflict in Gaza.

NGOs also work closely with local communities.

UNICEF, for example, trains young people to become champions for change and raise awareness of children's rights.

There are some challenges.

NGOs depend on fundraising and might not always have enough money to carry out their work.

Some have also faced criticism.

For instance, Oxfam had its government funding paused after safeguarding concerns in the Democratic Republic of Congo, although it made improvements and was later allowed to apply for funding again.

In conclusion, both government departments and NGOs have strengths and weaknesses.

Whilst governments have more resources and oversight, NGOs can often reach people faster and work more closely with communities.

They're often most effective when they work together.

Today, we've been learning what is the role of NGOs in responding to international crises? We've learned that NGOs are non-government organisations which provide humanitarian assistance and work for social justice around the world.

They can be funded by government departments but will not be part of government.

NGOs provide humanitarian assistance in global crises, like food, shelter, and healthcare.

They often work with other organisations, like the World Health Organisation, to respond quickly and help more people.

For example, Save the Children have supplied food and vaccinated children during the conflict in Gaza.

NGOs can be effective in a humanitarian crisis because they're flexible, raise awareness, and work with communities.

However, their impact can be limited by factors such as funding or challenges in how they're managed.

That's the end of today's lesson.

Thank you for joining me.