Balancing Sphere standards with implementation constraints
By Karolina Brach, IOM

Shelter and settlement planning requires cross-sectoral coordination. When site planning is not done at the first stage of the emergency responses , the feasibility of shifting to integrated approaches in the extremely congested camps is challenging. Government rules and regulations have an impact on the settlement planning and shelter constructions in the protracted crisis. How far can the humanitarian approaches and Sphere standards be compromised for dignified living conditions amidst socio-political and spatial constraints?
“Where national standards are lower than the Sphere Minimum Standards, humanitarian organisations should work with the government to progressively raise them. “
The Sphere Handbook, 2018
Starting off by sharing challenges of settlement planning in the Rohingya response, this session will provide a platform to share experience and negotiate on the use of Sphere standards - specifically the living space standards, for shelters and settlement planning, by answering the questions:
What are shelter and settlement standards in the context you are working with?
What are the challenges in using Sphere standards and what are your methods to emphasize Sphere standards?