About UN Civil-Military Coordination

What is United Nations Civil-Military Coordination?

UN Civil-Military Coordination is "the essential dialogue and interaction between civilian and military actors in humanitarian emergencies that is necessary to protect and promote humanitarian principles, avoid competition, minimize inconsistency, and when appropriate, pursue common goals. Basic strategies range from co-existence to cooperation. Coordination is a shared responsibility facilitated by liaison and common training."

In other terms, UN-CMCoord is a framework that enhances a broad understanding of humanitarian action and guides political and military actors on how best to support that action. It helps to develop context-specific policy based on internationally agreed guidelines, and it establishes humanitarian civil-military coordination structures, ensuring staff members are trained to make that coordination work. 

UN-CMCoord is particularly essential in complex emergencies / high-risk environments in order to facilitate humanitarian access, the protection of civilians, and the security of humanitarian aid workers.

For infographics in multiple langauges, please click here

CMCoord timeline of development