Background
On the 7th of October, 2023, the Palestinian terror organisation Hamas launched thousands of rockets against Israel while simultaneously breaching the perimeter fence of Gaza in several places. The organisation entered Israeli soil, ultimately leading to Israel declaring a state of war. In the following months, the conflict escalated, increasing civilians’ need for aid from NGOs.
SPS, a Risk Management company, provides comprehensive support to organisations and
individuals worldwide and specialises in advanced solutions for crisis support, security and medical services, and travel risk. The company prioritizes developing strategies to address threats, including civil or political unrest, pandemics, and unforeseen emergencies. Ultimately reducing profound and unpredictable risks. Among the organisations that need support are several NGOs carrying out imperative work in war-affected areas, such as Save the Children.
“We have had several inquiries from NGOs operating in Gaza, which is an incredibly high-risk and complex environment with only limited medical and security infrastructure in place. They have been looking for assured support for emergency medical evacuation from Gaza into either Egypt or Israel, which requires robust mechanisms and procedures for communication and coordination between various organisations.”
Rob Stephenson, Director of Global Assistance at SPS
Challenge
Working in war-affected areas presents relentless challenges. Constant threats of violence, bombings, and ambushes require staff to remain on perpetual high alert. The unpredictability of conflict zones makes it difficult to anticipate and manage risks effectively.
NGOs are particularly concerned about their ability to evacuate potentially injured personnel from conflict-affected areas such as Gaza. The urgency and complexity of medical evacuations, compounded by unsafe travel routes and limited medical facilities, highlight the dire need for robust emergency response mechanisms.
Thus, NGOs clearly demand assurance that medical and security assistance is available when needed—a demand that SPS can meet with its services. By offering comprehensive risk mitigation strategies, SPS enables NGOs to confidently continue their critical work, even in the most volatile environments.
Solution – Empowering NGOs
Two capabilities that SPS provides and are especially relevant for NGOs operating in Gaza are:
- Global Assistance: SPS provides strategic and operational support solutions for clients, offering security and medical services 24/7.
- Crisis Management: a dedicated Global Response Centre that uses advanced technological systems and intelligence to manage current crises and, if necessary, carry out emergency evacuations.
One way for SPS to elevate its Global Assistance and Crisis Management services in Gaza, is to make the service as customised as possible for NGOs. As a response to the prevailing concerns, SPS has integrated the Safeture Platform into its services, thus creating a proactive solution for them.
This includes providing personnel on the ground access to the Safeture Mobile Application and training them before deploying to Gaza. The app enables SPS to monitor the exact location of personnel on-site and follow their whereabouts and planned travel routes.
Furthermore, a key benefit of the Safeture Platform is the real-time alerts of incidents in the area, making it possible for all parties to follow the development of events and incidents that may affect their work. Should incidents or situations arise that make it impossible for the staff to continue to perform their work in Gaza, SPS can communicate with them through the app. Personnel can also press the emergency button in the app, which triggers SPS to start a medical and/or security response to one of the border crossing points between Gaza and either Egypt or Israel.
Outcome
With SPS’s comprehensive service combined with the Safeture platform, NGOs can carry out their important work in Gaza. Knowing that they have professional teams that know where they are at all times and can assist with help at any time gives them reassurance.
It is crucial for on-site personnel that, with the SPS service, they continuously receive real-time information, have the assurance that their locations are always known, and can communicate easily to request help if needed.
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