4.6 Accountability

CARE is accountable to disaster-affected communities, as well as to donors and other stakeholders, for meeting standards for quality and effectiveness in our assistance. The standards CARE is accountable for are described in CARE’s Humanitarian Accountability Framework (for more information, see the Quality and Accountability section).

CARE needs to ensure that all emergency WASH programmes are accountable to the people affected by the emergency, and that the effectiveness of our response is monitored and measured. The WASH cluster has developed a useful checklist and a guide to accountability in WASH programmes (Annex 24.1.9 and Annex 24.1.10).

In designing and managing WASH programmes, pay particular attention to the equitable participation of women and men in the planning, design and management of water facilities. Consideration also needs to be given to ‘vulnerable’ populations—namely women, children, the elderly, the disabled, and people living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic illnesses such as tuberculosis—to ensure that everyone has access to WASH services that meet their needs.