itarian needs exist within a sector , and when there are numerous actors within sectors , and when national authorities need coordinated support . 22 The UN Guidelines stipulate the coordination between humanitarian actors and UNMISS , as well as their participation in the UN Cluster System in South Sudan . 23 However , the existing guidelines in South Sudan discourages the co-location of military and humanitarian actors during complex emergency situations in order to avoid the military ’ s influences over humanitarian actors . 24 In South Sudan , the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs ( OCHA ) and the JOC act as the primary focal point for information exchange between the humanitarian community and UNMISS in the Cluster System . 25 ( see Figure-3 below ).
The Cluster is responsible for consulting with cluster members to determine the level of inclusion of UNMISS personnel in cluster meetings and processes . Certain UNMISS components or sections regularly engage with the humanitarian cluster . It is , however , the prerogative of the Cluster as to whether or not UNMISS will be invited to participate in any specific meeting . For instance , observing the management activities in Protection of Civilian ( PoC ) sites , some sources site that the cooperation and coordination between these mechanisms was secured through the camp management cluster , daily coordination meetings , and a humanitarian coordinator , who acted like a ‘ firewall ’, so that there was no direct interaction between humanitarian and military actors . This firewall would hinder effective civil-military coordination , in fact causing a lack of prompt information sharing , and acting as an obstacle to effective coordination in the response to crisis in July .
The Cluster System was originally intended to provide quick response to emergency situations . However , due to a detailed coordination procedure in the Cluster System in South Sudan , immediate response crises is impossible . When a humanitarian agency makes a request to UNMISS for the use of military assets ( e . g . armed escort , air / ground transportation , engineering capability , etc .), all requests are channeled through OCHA to the JOC , and the JOC forwards the requests on to the military headquarters U-9 Staff Branch . This means there is no direct coordination channel between humanitarian actors and UNMISS Forces . UN Civil-Military Coordination ( UN-CMCoord ) guideline range from co-existence to cooperation . Coordination is a shared responsibility facilitated by liaison and common training . 26 The UN-CMCoord is the system of interaction involving exchange of information , negotiation , de-confliction , mutual support , and planning at all levels between military elements and humanitarian organizations , development organizations , and / or the local civilian population to achieve respective objectives . 27
Observing the UNMISS and Cluster System in South Sudan , humanitarian actors and UNMISS Forces should have distinct functions and roles in civil-military relation . Actors working in the same area should have closer coordination to realize a rapid response to an emergency situation . In this context , civil-military coordination and cooperation between the Cluster System , Mission Headquarters and Force Headquarters in South Sudan would be inefficient , thus the UN-CMCoord concept does not function accordingly .
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