Shrinking Humanitarian Space? Trends and Prospects on Security and Access

Shrinking humanitarian space describes the situation where the changing nature of armed conflict and the geopolitical shifts, particularly since 9/11, combine to inhibit the provision of humanitarian assistance. By conflating unproven assumptions about unrelated challenges under this single heading, humanitarian organizations have generated an unnecessarily gloomy outlook on future prospects for their security and access. There is no conclusive evidence that humanitarian space is declining over time; the blurring of boundaries between humanitarianism and other international responses to conflict often does more good than harm; and in seeking to maximize security and access, emphasis should be focused on practical strategies rather than simply on the reassertion of traditional humanitarian principles.