ASDEPCO’s Security Policy

1.1 Preamble

This document

Seeks to lay down a foundation for ASDEPCO as it establishes and builds upon its existing approaches to health, safety and security
The health, safety and security (HS&S) of staff are key responsibilities of ASDEPCO. ASDEPCO accepts a duty of care for all staff, whatever their personal profile. ASDEPCO is committed to clear, applicable and proportionate security policy, protocols and plans
The purpose of this policy is to increase the health, safety and security awareness of all staff, to ensure procedures are clear to staff, create a culture of well-being, safety, security, and ultimately, to enable project continuity.

1.2 Scope of this Document

The scope of this policy is all staff of ASDEPCO and all its related offices. It also governs the health, safety and security principles that apply to ASDEPCO visitors including ASDEPCO Board members and third parties (e.g. Member Association staff, personal assistants, donors, celebrities, free-lancers, volunteers, consultants and media teams) to ASDEPCO field

1.3 Compliance and Responsibilities

While ASDEPCO recognizes that no working environment can be made risk free, much can be done to mitigate risk when all parties recognize their roles and responsibilities within an organization’s health, safety and security framework.

The ASDEPCO Safety and Security Policy is in line with the guiding principles and standards of behaviour that are described in the Code of Conduct, ASDEPCO’s Core Values and Mission Statement. Knowledge on all forms of unacceptable conduct, which includes sexual abuse, exploitation and sexual harassment are a critical element of ASDEPCO’s HS&S risk management. The ASDEPCO Code of Conduct is available on the intranet of ASDEPCO International.

Non-compliance is a disciplinary issue and will be enforced for all staff, whatever their position in the organisation; it is compulsory and concurrent with the start of any kind of work with ASDEPCO. The key to effective HS&S risk management is the creation of a culture of health, safety and security. ASDEPCO will work to create such an environment. Each staff member bears a significant responsibility for their own health, safety and security and needs to be aware that their personal and professional conduct can have an impact on others health, safety and security as well.

In addition to adherence to organizational policies and procedures, individuals must be sensitive to their environments and willing to adapt to changing threats. For this reason, health, safety and security is necessarily a cooperative effort between the organization and all its employees.

2. Safety and Security Policy Principles

Safety principles

2.1 Primacy of Life

For ASDEPCO, life is of greater value than material and therefore no staff should endanger their own life, or the lives of others, whilst attempting to protect ASDEPCO property, equipment, financial resources, documents or infrastructure. This also means that ASDEPCO will consider primacy of life the priority when dealing with any crisis.

2.2 Right to withdraw

ASDEPCO upholds the right to withdraw an employee or a group of employees from an area or country at all times. Non-compliance is a disciplinary issue.

2.3 Principle of non-Partiality and Neutrality

ASDEPCO adopts the principles of non-partiality and neutrality. These principles are the foundation of a strategy based upon acceptance by the host community. This is the security strategy that ASDEPCO considers most appropriate.

2.4 Acceptance as the primary Security Strategy

The primary strategy to mitigate risk is acceptance. A security strategy based on acceptance means building a safe operating environment through consent, approval and cooperation from individuals, communities and local authorities. Acceptance cannot be assumed or taken for granted. It has to be pursued.

A secondary component of the security strategy is protection by reducing the vulnerability of ASDEPCO to a possible threat, for example, by building walls or hiring guards. Improving practice through standard operating procedures (SOPs) is also a protective measure.

Under certain circumstances, generally as a last resort, deterrence measures can further reduce the risk by containing the threat with a counter threat, for example: Armed protection, diplomatic/political leverage, temporary suspension. The acceptance strategy will, dependent on the risk level in a country, be combined with protective measures. ASDEPCO avoids deterrence measures as much as possible. The centre of gravity rests with an acceptance approach

ASDEPCO and its representing staff will avoid the use of armed protection. Exceptional situations, where recognized, armed protection may be non-negotiable for operational access, requires escalating to the Health, Safety and Security

2.5 Do No Harm

One of the most influential factors for the success of ASDEPCO’s acceptance approach is the ‘Do No Harm Principle’

. ASDEPCO will not undertake any missions, field visits or project activities that jeopardize the safety of staff, partner organisations, the beneficiaries or the local community. In line with the

“Do No Harm” principle, ASDEPCO aims to be inclusive, to respect and promote human rights within its organisational structure and to ensure that the programming is not doing any harm, be it directly or indirectly, intentionally or unintentionally. ASDEPCO has developed tools and standards to ensure that the “Do No Harm” approach is applied to integrate conflict-sensitivity wherever it is relevant

2.6 Duty of Care

ASDEPCO has both a legal and a moral obligation to take all possible and reasonable measures to reduce the risk of harm to those working for ASDEPCO. In programme countries where the legal minimum standards of occupational health and safety regulations are lower than the standards upheld by ASDEPCO, the higher health and safety standards

ASDEPCO’s duty of care also encompasses support mechanisms following an incident or crisis, such as access to confidential care support services for psychosocial issues such as stress, anxiety and depression, and a crisis hotline for security related support as well as medical emergencies.

2.7 Security Risk Threshold

The impact of ASDEPCO’s activities that can be achieved should always outweigh the risks taken. In consequence, ASDEPCO will suspend its operations where the security risks are disproportionate to the potential program benefits. Therefore, ASDEPCO commits itself to continuously analyse and understand the context and the risks that result from working in that context.

ASDEPCO partners are encouraged and supported to develop their own security risk management plans, as well as to participate in the security trainings that are implemented through ASDEPCO. ASDEPCO staff who are travelling with or staying at partner organisations follow the security plan of the partner. In case the directives outlined in the security management system of ASDEPCO are more stringent, ASDEPCO staff must follow ASDEPCO’s security plan. Whenever there is any doubt the line manager should be contacted for advice.

2.8 Security Risk Management

The Security Risk Assessment (SRA) is the primary mechanism for managing and mitigating security risks to ASDEPCO personnel, property and assets encompass a range of measures designed to reduce the level of risk to an acceptable level. The level of acceptable risk is identified in the SRA’s of the country specific security plans.

ASDEPCO’s security risk management has four important principles that relate to dealing with questions of acceptable risk:

Do not accept unnecessary risk.
Accept risk when benefits outweigh risks.
Make risk management decisions at the right level.
Everything reasonable should be done to reduce risk.

2.9 No Ransoms Principle

ASDEPCO will do everything ethically possible to secure the release of detained or kidnapped staff. However, ASDEPCO will not pay ransom for the release of staff.

2.10 Inclusion of Diverse Profiles

ASDEPCO strives for equality in its security approach. Individuals should not be subject to any discriminatory restrictions. However, ASDEPCO recognises that individuals may face different risks or be more vulnerable to certain threats because of their nationality, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability. Under certain circumstances, the prevailing security context or specific risks to an individual, because of their profile, may require

ASDEPCO to take additional security measures. For this reason, individuals shall be informed of specific risks they may face and be advised how to minimise risks.