Terminology

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Last updated: Jul 04, 2022 by FIS
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Key Definitions of the HP-COD

Consistent terminologies and definitions are central to establishing a common understanding of the Humanitarian Profile CODs. The definitions of the distinct categories help understand the overall humanitarian profile figures as well as the disaggregated affected populations. The categories identified below are most commonly used but the context of the emergency needs to be considered and definitions that are applicable need to be discussed and agreed upon with partners (e.g., via the IMWG and ICCG).

Breaking Down the Humanitarian Profile 

The Population Statistic COD (COD-PS) Total Population is the basis for finding the Humanitarian Profile COD (People Affected). The Humanitarian Profile COD is disaggregated to provide a better understanding of the affected population. Later on in the response, data will be disaggregated and more data will be added to understand the population's vulnerable groups and needs to calculate the number of  People in Need (PIN). 

The Humanitarian Profile COD Terminology 

The Humanitarian Population Figures represent the relationship between sets of the total population of a given territory in an emergency response. 

Total Population (COD-PS)

  • Includes all people living within the administrative boundaries of a nation state. Note: there can be a crisis-specific strategic decision to calculate the total population looking only at a sub-national level.

  • Example: 8 million people live in the country of Alpha which was recently hit by a crisis. This includes 500,000 refugees who came to the country one year ago. The total population is 8 million people.

People Affected (COD-HP)

  • Includes all those whose lives have been impacted as a direct result of the crisis. This figure is often the first available after a sudden onset emergency and often defines the scope or boundary of a needs assessment. It does not, however, necessarily equate the number of people in need of humanitarian aid; it should not be consumed or interchangeable with the category People in Need. Characteristics of the category People Affected must include:

    • Being in close geographical proximity to a crisis.

    • Physically or emotionally impacted.

    • Experiencing personal loss or loss of capital and assets as a direct result of the crisis.

    • Being faced with an immediate threat from a crisis.

  • When a crisis becomes protracted and its effects deepen and spread, the definition of Population Affected may need modification to include populations that may be more geographically distant from the center of the initial shock and not have been physically/emotionally impacted but experiencing secondary effects of a disaster/crisis.

Example: The Country of Tallias has a Total Population of eight million people. Six million people living in three provinces were exposed to damages and destruction following an earthquake. The population suffered injuries, damaged to dwellings and lives in areas that are at high risk of aftershocks—they are population affected.

Example:  Two million out of the country of Genovia’s eight million population were not affected. Thus, the population affected equals 6 million people. 

Population Classification of Affected Population

The most important data characteristic is the scheme of categories into which the affected population is disaggregated. These categories must be mutually exclusive within the same level of the hierarchy such that the sum of all people in each category at a given level in the hierarchy equals the number of affected people or casualties.

  1. Affected- the sum of displaced and non-displaced persons. 

    1. Non-displaced- the sum of Host and Non-Host persons.

      1. Host- persons who are part of a host community or family receiving affected people. Due to the stress placed on the host families and communities, they are considered part of the humanitarian caseload.

      2. Non-Host- People requiring immediate assistance during a period of emergency who have not moved from their homes or places of habitual residence.

    2. Displaced- the sum of Internally Displaced Persons, Refugees and Asylum Seekers, and Others of Concern.

      1. Internally Displaced Persons- persons or groups who have been forced to flee or leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State Border.

      2. Refugees and Asylum Seekers- A refugee is someone who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside of the country of his or her nationality. An Asylum Seeker is someone who says he or she is a refugee but whose claim has not yet been definitely evaluated.

    3.  Others of Concern- persons who have been displaced by the emergency and form part of the humanitarian profile, but do not fall on any of the above categories.

Each of the above 3 sub-classes of Displaced has the following potential sub-categories

i. Camp or Camplike- the sum of Planned Camp or Settlement, Self-settled Camp, or Collective Centre, and Reception or Transit Site.

ii. Planned Camps- Planned camps are places where displaced populations find accommodation on purpose-built sites, and a full-service infrastructure is provided, including water supply, food distribution, non-food item distribution, education, and healthcare, usually exclusive for the population of the site.

iii. Self-settled camps- A displaced community or displaced groups may settle in camps, independent of assistance from the local government or the aid community. Self-settled camps are often sited on state-owned, private or communal land, usually after limited negotiations with the local population or private owners overuse and access.

iv. Collective Centers- This type of settlement is where displaced persons find accommodation in pre-existing public buildings and community facilities, for example, in schools, barracks, community centers, town halls gymnasiums, hotels, warehouses, disused factories, and unfinished buildings. They are often used when displacement occurs inside a city itself of when there are significant flows of displaced people into a city or town often, a mass shelter is intended as temporary or transit accommodation.

v. Reception and Transit Camps- Oftentimes, it is necessary to provide temporary accommodation for displaced persons. These camps might be necessary at the beginning of an emergency as a temporary accommodation pending transfer to a suitable, safe, longer-term holding camp, or at the end of an operation as a staging point of return. Reception and transit camps are therefore usually either intermediate or short-term installations.

d. Private or individual accommodation- the sum of Privately Hosted or Non-hosted.

i. Hosted- living in someone’s else home with them, sharing resources and a heart with another household group.

ii. Non-hosted- living in one’s own home.

2. Casualties- the sum of Dead, Missing, and Injured

a. Dead- persons confirmed as dead and persons missing and presumed dead.

b. Missing- persons whose status during or after an emergency is not known.

c. Injured- persons suffering from physical injuries, trauma or an illness requiring medical treatment.

People in Need Terminology 

People in Need (PiN)

  • People in Need are a subset of the Population Affected and are defined as those members:

  • Whose physical security, basic rights, dignity, living conditions or livelihoods are threatened or have been disrupted, AND

  • Whose current level of access to basic services, goods, and social protection is inadequate to re-establish normal living conditions with their accustomed means in a timely manner without additional assistance

  • This category is further broken down into sub-categories or by sector/cluster to provide additional detail about the intensity, severity or type of need.

Example: In the most populous provinces, where 5 million people out of the 6 million People Affected reside, 90% of the buildings and infrastructure were destroyed in the earthquake, and roads rendered inaccessible. Those people are in need of assistance. Out of the 5 million, the number of those who have sustained critical injuries, are inaccessible or living in dwellings at risk of collapsing is estimated at 2 million. They are in need of immediate assistance.

People Targeted

  • People Targeted is a sub-set of People In Need and represents the number of people humanitarian actors aim or plan to assist. This projected number is typically smaller than the number of People in Need, given: a) it is rare that international humanitarian actors can meet all needs; b) needs are also being addressed by actors not participating in the joint plan, including national Governments; and c) people in need are not always accessible.

Example: 2 million out of the 5 million people in need will be targeted for the delivery of tents and shelter material as well as health assistance.

People Covered

  • People Covered includes those who have received some form of assistance. The estimate of people covered seeks to clarify the type and duration of assistance received.

Example: 1.5 million people have received family tents and shelter material as well as access to medical services. 1 million people have access to materials to repair their housing fully within the next three seeks and their shelter needs are thus covered.

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