Revision of the MERS Handbook launched

The event was attended by 31 participants from 20 organisations, including specialists and thought leaders from some of the world’s leading humanitarian agencies and NGOs.

Technical working groups were created and technical leads identified to spearhead the updating and rewriting of the core, assessment and technical standards (enterprise development, productive assets, employment and financial services) included in the MERS Handbook.

The Minimum Economic Recovery Standards (MERS) are a companion to the Sphere Handbook. They articulate the minimum level of assistance needed to empower crisis-affected and vulnerable populations through strategies that support enterprises and markets to provide sustainable income and employment.

MERS success in mainstreaming economic recovery programming across humanitarian agencies greatly depends on its ability to remain updated and relevant, responding to the critical needs of field practitioners.

Accordingly, the revision process includes a consultative process with regional input from practitioners in the Middle East, Europe, Latin America, West Africa and Asia Pacific beginning in March 2016.

For more information on how to get involved with the MERS revision process download this leaflet and/or contact MERS.