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The role of evidence in humanitarian assessment: the Seed System Security Assessment and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis
Author(s) -
Byrne Karri Goeldner,
March Julie,
McGuire Shawn,
Meissner Laura,
Sperling Louise
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
disasters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.744
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1467-7717
pISSN - 0361-3666
DOI - 10.1111/disa.12014
Subject(s) - imperfect , complementarity (molecular biology) , poison control , triangulation , engineering , computer security , forensic engineering , risk analysis (engineering) , criminology , political science , psychology , computer science , medicine , medical emergency , geography , cartography , philosophy , linguistics , genetics , biology
This paper reviews advances in the development and use of two evidence‐based assessment toolkits: the Seed System Security Assessment (SSSA) and the Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis (EMMA). Both were created in the past five years and have been employed in a range of acute and chronic stress contexts across Africa, Asia, and parts of the Americas, in periods of civil strife, displacement, and drought, as well as following earthquakes, flooding, and political instability. The aims of this paper are threefold: to review advances with regard to each tool; to compare how each toolkit gathers and uses evidence, while considering possibilities for greater complementarity; and to reflect on the nature of ‘evidence’ used to guide humanitarian response in sudden‐onset and chronic crisis situations. A comparison highlights the importance of triangulation and informed analysis for drawing conclusions from imperfect evidence, understanding the limitations of each assessment methodology, and confronting tacit assumptions.