Overview

The following tools and platforms are available for inter-agency Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) interventions. All of the resources below represent IOM-led collective development of Inter Agency-PSEA tools.

Statement by the IASC Principals on Protection Against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, 11 December 2015

The IASC Principals adopted a statement affirming their commitment to actively prevent and respond to sexual exploitation and abuse by humanitarian workers. The Statement importantly reinforces the role of the PSEA Senior Focal Points, Humanitarian Coordinators, and the Humanitarian Country Teams to implement this commitment in all humanitarian response operations. The Management and Accountability Framework of the UN Development and Resident Coordinator System (2021) captures the corresponding PSEA responsibilities for Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams in development settings. 

Best Practice Guide to Establish Inter-Agency Community-Based Complaint Mechanisms (CBCM), 2016

The Best Practice Guide provides operational guidance on how to set up and run an inter-agency community- based complaint mechanism to handle reports of sexual abuse and exploitation by aid workers. It compiles lessons learned, examples, and case studies gathered throughout the course of a 2013-2015 pilot project on inter-agency CBCMs, which IOM coordinated on behalf of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC). Most recently, IOM has also developed a Guidance Note (2022) for how to measure successful progress under the current IASC model (under review in the 2023-2026 IASC PSEAH Strategy and Work Plan). 

The Global Standard Operating Procedures on Inter-Agency Cooperation in CBCMs, 2016

The Global SOPs are an agreement by the IASC Principals – including IOM – on how agencies can coordinate sensitive complaint referrals while operating under an inter-agency Community-Based Complaint Mechanism (CBCM). Drafted with the collaboration of 16 agencies, the SOPs cover how to receive, assess, refer, and follow-up on complaints between agencies in line with diverse confidentiality and data protection policies. Because the SOPs have already been aligned with agencies' policies, in-country PSEA stakeholders can use this agreement to negotiate CBCM SOPs in country.

PSEA Coordinator Training Curriculum and Deployment Package, 2020

This training was devised for PSEA Specialists operating within the RC/HC Teams to support Inter-Agency PSEA efforts. The training, which reached its sixth edition, guides Coordinators through engaging with the humanitarian system and PSEA stakeholders as well as the work at the inter-agency level, including how to implement community-based complaint mechanisms and how to develop developing a PSEA Network workplan, inter alia. Alongside the training, guidance developed by IOM for PSEA Coordinators include the Generic PSEA Coordinator ToRs (see below) and the Deployment Package for PSEA Coordinators (2020).

The Deployment Package is a tool intended to provide targeted guidance to PSEA Coordinators in charge of supporting an inter-agency Program in-country under Resident or Humanitarian Coordinators. While targeted to full-time, dedicated Coordinators, this resource can inform the work of anyone with PSEA coordination responsibilities at the country level. The Deployment Package is now available in English, French, Arabic, and Spanish and will soon be translated into a dynamic online platform for easy navigation.  

For more information on the training curriculum and iterations, please reach out to: PSEACoordinatorTraining@iom.int or PSEA-CBCM@iom.int.

IASC Learning Package on Protection from Sexual Misconduct for UN partner organizations, 2020

This interactive and innovative learning package that aims to raise awareness among IASC member staff and partners to ensure they have the skills and tools to define, detect, and respond to sexual misconduct, including SEA and sexual harassment. The learning package is based on the IOM learning package on protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. IOM coordinated the inter-agency effort to adapt the package into an interagency product suitable to train staff from varied agencies and implementing partners, and expanded to include Sexual Harassment.

Generic Terms of Reference for PSEA Network, PSEA Focal Points, and PSEA Coordinators, 2021

The Generic TORs were developed to harmonize and systematize the role of PSEA practitioners in-country, while providing a resource that can be contextualized based on the leadership structure, practical needs and reality on the ground as well as the PSEA setting already in place. Specifically: 

• The PSEA Network Generic ToRs can be used to create or enhance existing ToRs for a national-level Network or Task Force in order to support the IASC commitment to establish an effective PSEA Network in every response.  
• The PSEA Focal Point Generic ToRs were developed to assist organizations without ToRs in place. (NOTE: IOM has its own Focal Point TORs, see PSEAH page)
• The PSEA Coordinator Generic ToRs are intended to inform the consistent recruitment of dedicated inter-agency Coordinators at an experienced professional level.  

The Generic PSEA ToRs are available in English, French, Spanish, and Arabic. 

Preparing a Joint SEA Risk Assessment - Technical Note, 2022

The Joint SEA Risk Assessment Technical Note promotes good practices of collective SEA risk assessments to support PSEA stakeholders in-country, including PSEA Coordinators and PSEA Networks, in preparing and organizing a joint SEA risk assessment in order to capture response-wide SEA risk results.  The Technical Note seeks to facilitate the implementation of a joint assessment; it does not represent a template or a prescriptive methodology but rather step-by-step guidance on key issues to consider, while highlighting the importance of contextualization.  

Together We Say No (to PSEA), PSEA at the Frontline

The “PSEA at the Frontline” initiative is aimed at providing frontline workers and partners with critical knowledge on protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA) through a dedicated package of simplified communication material in highly illustrated print, audio and multimedia formats currently available in 22 languages. Briefing Note available in EN, FR, SP and AR.

The initiative, developed by the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in partnership with Translators without Borders (TWB), targets frontline workers who play a key role within assistance programmes and interact with beneficiaries and community populations on a daily basis.

The materials were developed based on feedback received from over 3000 frontline humanitarian workers in over 80 countries. Extensive field testing of the materials was also carried out in five countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Colombia, South Sudan, and Turkey. All communication materials are available to IASC members and PSEA stakeholders for their use.

United Nations System-wide Training Module on the Rights and Dignity of Victims of SEAH

The Office of the Victims’ Rights Advocate (OVRA), IOM and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) jointly developed an open access, facilitator-led, training module for all UN staff and related personnel, on “The Rights and Dignity of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and Sexual Harassment”.

Platforms

IASC PSEA Website

Country-level PSEA resources and tools, along with key global protocols and guidance, are available on the IASC PSEA Website. There are sample GBV referral pathways, risk assessments, community awareness materials, mainstreaming checklists, reporting tools, and more.

The UN Website on PSEA provides information on the Secretary-General PSEA Initiatives (including the fact sheet of who-does-what), the Victim Rights Advocate mandate, the Office of the Special Coordinator on improving the United Nations response to sexual exploitation and abuse, the Victim Trust Fund (see info below), and UN- wide data on allegations.

The UN Knowledge Gateway, acessible to UN personnel, provides extra resources, communities of practice, and links to trainings.

Other pages in this Manual

For guidance on IOM's internal PSEA policy and procedures, please see Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and Sexual Harassment (PSEAH).

For guidance on the inter-agency PSEA in-country structure and programme, and the dedicated DOE inter-agency support project, please see Inter-Agency Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA).

Contacts

For more information on inter-agency PSEA initiatives, contact: PSEA-CBCM@iom.int.