In October the second phase of the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for 2016 will commence. After concluding the Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) in September, the clusters will now start with defining the key elements of the cluster strategies. Based on these cluster strategies NGOs and other humanitarian partners will then develop their HRP projects, which will be uploaded using the Online Project System (OPS). The OPS will open on 14 October, with 26 October as the deadline for uploading projects.

The OPS is an online database containing projects which are part of a humanitarian response in a major crisis like the current situation in Iraq. The OPS aims to coordinate the humanitarian response by collecting the projects of humanitarian actors in the field, thereby avoiding duplications and ensuring no gaps occur. For projects to be included in the HRP they need to be uploaded in the OPS first; local and international NGOs as well as UN agencies can upload their projects. NGOs first need to create an account and register for the OPS, after which they can start uploading their projects. All uploaded projects, including those of other organizations are visible in the OPS. Participants can keep track of the funding status of the appeal using the Financial Tracking Service (FTS). Please note that uploaded projects will be reviewed by the clusters, and not all projects will be accepted into the HRP. Acceptance into the HRP also does not guarantee funding. A more detailed guide can be found in the attached presentation.

In cooperation with OCHA NCCI facilitated 2 workshops introducing the OPS to NGOs operating in Iraq. The first workshop was held on 5 October at NCCI’s Baghdad office, which was followed by a similar workshop at NCCI’s Erbil office on 7 October. On 13 October two more workshops will be held, one at NCCI Baghdad and one at ACTED’s Erbil office.

Please find attached below the presentation on the OPS, a user guide on the OPS and a contact list of the cluster coordinators.