Information management evolves and continuously adapts to changing environments. The Camp Management Agency should always seek new initiatives with updated ways to manage information.
Information management should always reflect feedback on needs of the displaced population and gaps in the response.
Data availability and what is needed by the Camp Management Agency is context-specific and may differ depending on whether it is a conflict or disaster-induced situation.
The purpose of all data collection is to provide information on needs, gaps and duplication of services in a coordinated manner.
Accurate, reliable and up-to-date information is the foundation on which a coordinated and effective camp response, in accordance with international technical standards, especially those of Sphere and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), is based. Best practice ensures good planning of information management systems based on real decision-making needs and the sharing and dissemination of information so that all actors are working with the same base-line data from the camp.
A Camp Management Agency has a continuous responsibility to collect, analyse and disseminate information. This information is the basis for effective coordination within the camp, and also externally as a part of intercamp coordination and monitoring by the Cluster/Sector Lead Agency, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and national authorities.
Information management entails collecting data on the camp population and on the provision of assistance and services within the camp. It includes collecting disaggregated demographic information and monitoring the use of standards and indicators across sectors.
Information management also comprises systematising information and its accessibility to all people in the camp.
Information at camp level should be collected, analysed and disseminated in line with an information management strategy at the national level. Shared systems and tools mean that information is relevant and accessible to a diversity of actors. Properly collected and managed, data contributes to ensuring higher and more consistent standards in assistance and protection within and between camps. It can also contribute to early recovery and development planning.
Involving and being accountable to camp residents, by following inclusive, participatory and accountable procedures, is central to best practice in information management at camp level. This includes making sure that sensitive data and information is managed with the utmost care and is based on principles of confidentiality, privacy and security and at all times ensures the protection of the displaced population.
