Rooted in Local Leadership, Powered by Global Solidarity: Strengthening Anticipatory Action across the IFRC Network

This briefing, prepared for the IFRC-DAG high-level meeting in November 2025, outlines key messages and recommendations from a report on strengthening locally led anticipatory action within the IFRC Network. It argues that while technical progress has been made, the shift toward local leadership is hindered by political factors, structural trade-offs between standardization and autonomy, and centralized funding and governance models.

• Scaling anticipatory action across a global network creates a structural tension between the need for global consistency and the desire for local autonomy. The requirement for simplicity, standardization, and coordination often limits the diversity of how anticipatory action is implemented locally.
• The primary obstacles to achieving locally led anticipatory action are political rather than technical. Local leadership is often narrowly defined and externally controlled because donors prioritize accountability, efficiency, and scalability over local autonomy due to their own institutional risk tolerances.
• Systemic challenges persist in the design and funding of anticipatory action, where international design and control still dominate. While implementation is decentralizing, global guidance and approval processes prioritize standardization, and funding—including the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF)—remains centralized with a reluctance to devolve discretion.
• A 'burden of proof' exists where donors require evidence of success before expanding support for locally led actions, which creates a cycle of dependency and slows reform. Additionally, a hierarchy persists that privileges science-based forecasting over local and Indigenous knowledge.
• Internal hierarchies within the IFRC Network can mirror the top-down dynamics the organization aims to avoid. Decision-making power and financial resources rarely reach the municipal or community levels where the majority of implementation occurs.
• The report recommends that the IFRC reimagine its operating model post-2025 to place National Societies at the center of design and decision-making. This includes co-developing a strategy that supports diverse locally led approaches and pilots devolved financing mechanisms.
• Recommendations for the Donor Advisory Group (DAG) and donors include shifting toward multi-year, flexible, and risk-tolerant funding models. This involves scaling contributions to the DREF, exploring catastrophe bonds and guarantees, and creating country-based pooled funds to increase the financial autonomy of National Societies.

APA

Harris, K., Williamson, K., & Klein, R. J. (2025). Rooted in Local Leadership, Powered by Global Solidarity: Strengthening Anticipatory Action across the IFRC Network. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/key-messages-anticipatory-action-ifrc.pdf

Chicago

Harris, Katy, Kate Williamson, and Richard J.T. Klein. Rooted in Local Leadership, Powered by Global Solidarity: Strengthening Anticipatory Action across the IFRC Network. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2025. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/key-messages-anticipatory-action-ifrc.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Harris |first1=Katy |last2=Williamson |first2=Kate |last3=Klein |first3=Richard J.T. |title=Rooted in Local Leadership, Powered by Global Solidarity: Strengthening Anticipatory Action across the IFRC Network |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=November 2025 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/key-messages-anticipatory-action-ifrc.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{harris2025rooted, author = {Harris, Katy and Williamson, Kate and Klein, Richard J.T.}, title = {{Rooted in Local Leadership, Powered by Global Solidarity: Strengthening Anticipatory Action across the IFRC Network}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2025}, month = nov, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/key-messages-anticipatory-action-ifrc.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }