Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance, Africa (DHA Africa)

Dates: 19th April to 28th May 2010 - Places available (updated 16th December 2009)

Director of Studies: Dr T O'Dempsey  todempsey@liv.ac.uk
Course Administrator: Eleanor Carr   e.carr@liv.ac.uk

Sponsor a Student


Programme Objectives

Student Entry Qualifications

University degree or equivalent professional qualification or experience. Applications are welcome from persons working with governmental, international and non-governmental organisations, (including media organisations and donor agencies) as well as other individuals preparing for, or currently engaged in, humanitarian work. Care is taken in selection of students to ensure an appropriate mix of skills and experience consistent with the multidisciplinary nature of the course. Applicants from Southern Africa are particularly welcome.  We also welcome applicants from elsewhere in Africa and across the globe.

Format

This is an intensive, multidisciplinary programme designed to encourage students from a variety of backgrounds and experiences to interact in a stimulating learning environment in which they will develop individual and team skills. The carefully constructed curriculum combining core and specialist modules enables students to explore the essential issues relevant to all humanitarian workers, whatever their professional background, and to select a specialist module which will provide them with a deeper understanding of an area of special interest.

Teaching methods include lectures, case studies, seminars, practical exercises and scenarios. Students are assessed as individuals and as members of a team.


DHA Structure and Content:

1. Core Module (5 days): The Humanitarian Arena

Political, Social and Economic context,
Complex Humanitarian Emergencies,
Natural Disasters, Global Climate Change
International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and Human Rights
Humanitarian Ethics and Codes of Conduct
The role of the Media


2. Core Module (5 days): Strategic Planning and Management of Displaced Populations

Team building, motivation and management
Emergency preparedness and strategic planning
Co-ordination; Humanitarian Reform
Minimum standards - The Sphere Project
Cross cultural communication skills
Gender issues; vulnerable groups in displaced populations
Working with local services and communities
Project proposals, reports, fundraising
Humanitarian workers: health; career development;
Security


3. Core Module (5 days): Process towards stability and sustainable development

The role of the military in humanitarian interventions
Peacekeeping, peace-building and peace-making
Repatriation and reintegration; Tracing
Post conflict rehabilitation and demobilization; Child Soldiers
Managing the transition to sustainable development
Economic stabilization and sustainable livelihoods
Exit strategies in humanitarian assistance programmes

4. Specialist Options (10 days): Participants choose one of the following modules running in parallel:

Health in Emergencies

Technical Support

Policy and advocacy

Public Health and  Communicable Disease Control;

Food and Nutrition;

Reproductive Health; HIV/AIDS;

Sexual violence; Torture;

Mental Health. 

Logistics;

Environmental Health;
Water and Sanitation;

Vector Control;
Communications.

Political analysis of complex emergencies;
Practical application of International Law;

Humanitarian interventions,

speaking out, and the Media;

Advocacy Strategies

Civil Society, networking and community mobilisation

5. Core Module (5 days): Synthesis and Assessments

Humanitarian emergency scenario exercises working in multidisciplinary teams
Individual Assessments and Team Presentations

Humanitarian Recruitment Forum

Many leading organisations may be interested in recruiting DHA graduates. The Humanitarian forum is a ‘careers fair’ event for DHA participants. It includes short presentations by local and international organisations followed by an ‘open forum’ session in which individual students meet with representatives for more detailed discussion, including advice regarding employment opportunities and application procedures.

DHA Faculty:

The DHA Faculty in South Africa benefits from a dynamic partnership between The Graduate School of Public & Development Management (P&DM) at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, and MSF (Doctors without Borders). The DHA also has enthusiastic collaboration from a wide range of national and international NGOs and UN agencies.

The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine is an international centre of excellence recognised worldwide for its work in promoting health in developing countries through research and education, including a range of cutting-edge programmes for humanitarian professionals.

The Graduate School of Public & Development Management (P&DM) , based in the faculty of Commerce, Law and Management at  the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, is the largest  postgraduate school in Southern Africa which focuses on education for government, NGOs and the not for profit sector. 

Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) is an independent international humanitarian organisation with extensive experience in responding to medical emergencies across the globe.

Experts from leading national and international NGOs, and international organisations also contribute to the DHA faculty such as ICRC, UNHCR, Oxfam, MANGO, and UNAIDs.

Location:

Tuition: The programme will be held at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

Accommodation: Student accommodation is available close to the teaching facilities.    Information on the preferred short-term supplier of accommodation for the University of the Witwatersrand is available at http://www.staycity.co.za

Alternatively, participants may wish to find their own accommodation elsewhere in the city.  

For information on hotels see: http://southafrica.hotels.com/

The site will request that you to enter a landmark – for this you should enter ‘Parktown’. A list of accommodation options will be given with prices. The map view will list how far the accommodation is away from the city centre.  Wits is only half a kilometre from the city centre, so you should aim to stay as close as possible unless you have your own transport.  Note that Johannesburg traffic is highly congested, and the expectation is that it will be more so when the DHA is being run as it is shortly before the World Cup Soccer tournament.

Cost:

Tuition: The DHA programme fee is £1850 and includes all tuition, course materials, and examination and diploma fees.  

Applications will be considered from individuals wishing to undertake the entire programme of study and also from a limited number of individuals interested in attending individual modules on a pro-rata basis. The Diploma award will be available only to participants who complete the entire programme of study. Participants undertaking individual modules cannot be guaranteed that these will be accredited towards the Diploma award at a future date.

Scholarships:  We are currently fundraising for sponsorship of African students. This may cover a proportion of the cost of the tuition fee for a limited number of students and will not exceed 50% of the fee. Preference will be given to applicants who are co-sponsored by NGOs working in Africa.

Accommodation: Accommodation costs are not included in the tuition fees. Participants are responsible for their own accommodation arrangements and costs.

Further information and application forms are available at:
www.liv.ac.uk/lstm/learning_teaching/post_grad/DiplHumAssis.htm

Applications and enquiries: Eleanor Carr

Email: e.carr@liv.ac.uk 
Tel: + 44 (0)151 705 3359,
Fax: +44 (0)151 705 3348

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK. 

 

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