How four logistics companies stepped up relief efforts in humanitarian crises

The world is contending with multiple crises – as of June 2024, the conflict in Ukraine has led to the fleeing of some 6.5 million refugees globally; in Syria, over 14.6 million people – over two-thirds of the population – require humanitarian assistance according to the United Nations; and in Sudan, 25.6 million people are facing acute hunger according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). Indeed, the World Economic Forum Global Risks Report 2024 shows geoeconomic confrontation among the top 10 risks over the next 10 years.

Challenges such as lack of leadership, systematic effort coordination, and achieving high-quality outcomes led the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) to implement a system-wide humanitarian reform that resulted in the creation of the cluster approach. The Logistics Cluster was established in 2005 to provide leadership in logistics coordination, addressing common logistics gaps to enable organizations to deliver humanitarian assistance effectively and efficiently to people in need. The IASC designated the World Food Programme (WFP) as the lead agency of the Logistics Cluster thanks to its expertise in humanitarian logistics and global reach. This coordination is needed more than ever, with complex emergencies on the rise, with increasing cross-border and regional effects.

The Forum-initiated Logistics Emergency Team (LET) is a vital player alongside the Logistics Cluster. This coalition of the largest global logistics companies (AP Moller-Maersk, UPS, DP World and Agility) has worked with multiple agencies and humanitarian organizations to provide targeted pro bono support to existing humanitarian operations.

In response to the staggering humanitarian needs in Gaza, the Palestine Logistics Cluster, was activated on 16 October 2023. Between January and June 2024, the Logistics Cluster for the Gaza response supported over 225 humanitarian organizations, in the continued pursuit of optimizing their logistics operations, for improved planning and maximized efficiency wherever possible. Additionally, the Logistics Cluster has facilitated the transport of over 19,600 metric tons (mt) of humanitarian cargo, as well as facilitated the storage for over 51,000 cubic meters (m3) of aid, including by providing 29 mobile storage units to the humanitarian community further bolstering their capacity inside Gaza.

Recently, the LET has supported the humanitarian response to the crisis in Gaza. Since the opening of the Jordan corridor in November 2023, the Logistics Cluster has facilitated the dispatch of over 27,900 mt of cargo in 84 convoys.

To help expand capacity in Amman, the LET provided a fully equipped and staffed warehouse. The warehouse is strategically located, providing the space for cargo – food parcels, shelter items, kitchen and hygiene kits – to be consolidated before being dispatched into Gaza. Since the warehouse opened in July 2024, over 2,350 m3 of cargo from six humanitarian organizations were received for consolidation.

The LET has also been active in other conflict zones. Since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022, the LET used its locations in Poland, Romania and Hungary to provide warehouse space and transportation for aid. The logistic centres used their local knowledge to help streamline and organize aid distribution to affected areas. The LET also provided vital customs clearance information and facilitated the humanitarian supply chain along the Poland-Ukraine border.

Moreover, the LET has taken action following climate-related disasters. For instance, in early 2023, after major earthquakes killed over 50,000 people in Türkiye and Syria, the LET offered the Logistics Cluster capacity access to local logistics experts to support operations, reefers and assistance moving WFP mobile storage units. UPS supported customs clearance, a local transportation market assessment and in-country transportation, while Agility provided funding to the Logistics Cluster to support the overall response. LET members also offered an airlift from the UN Humanitarian Response Depot in Brindisi, Italy, to Adana, Türkiye.

The LET-developed “Emergency Dashboard Utility for Airfreight Resource and Delivery Options”, better known as EDUARDO, appeared to be highly advantageous as it was accessed 510 times during the first month of the earthquake. EDUARDO was designed to speed up humanitarian relief, activated with Google flight data and making it known what cargo capacity was available for humanitarian operations.

Humanitarian logistics must be collaborative among stakeholders from governments, NGOs, multilateral agencies and the private sector, given the funding restrictions and the challenges faced. It is the backbone of relief operations and critical to getting aid to where it’s needed quickly, particularly as supply chain bottlenecks can easily occur as seen in the Ukraine war. It also comprises most of its core funding needs, with studies placing 73% of humanitarian expenditures as linked to supply chain activities.

Coordination is thus critical to ensure costs are reduced and resources are managed effectively. So, while private-sector companies’ input into humanitarian relief and logistics is welcome and needed, there is still a need to coordinate their strengths and integrate them into the wider ecosystem. The tendency has been for companies to provide ad hoc support or donations which may not get utilized – approximately 80% of unsolicited donations sit in a warehouse or go to waste, according to DP World’s whitepaper on humanitarian logistics.

One-off or in-kind support may seem like the right approach with one-time disaster responses, such as wildfires, but the nature of humanitarian responses is evolving and humanitarian logistics must respond more effectively to rapidly and simultaneously emerging crises. For instance, cost-sharing structures could provide ongoing relief for continuous, protracted humanitarian crises, including wars, famine and slow-onset climate change phenomena such as droughts and floods.

Therefore, the sector must explore coordinated relief efforts among private sector players as well as humanitarian stalwarts.

Responding to emergencies requires innovative and bold collective action from organizations, governments and industries. As DP World’s whitepaper Empowering Humanitarian Logistics Resilience notes, forward planning, procurement, transportation, warehousing and distribution of resources are all necessary to alleviate human suffering during disasters, conflicts and emergencies.

First facilitated by the Forum in 2005, the LET unites the capacity and resources of the global logistics industry with the expertise and experience of the humanitarian community to provide more effective and efficient disaster relief. The companies also supply pro bono assets and services and deploy logistics experts to the Logistics Cluster.

The companies know engagement is for the long haul, with many committing to critically important long-term partnerships. The supply chain and transport community support for building capacity, preparedness and resilience has proven central in facilitating an inclusive response.

The LET initiative is housed within the Forum’s Centre for Centre for Regions, Trade and Geopolitics.

Companies are invited to join the centre to share their expertise, participate in projects and help accelerate the development of more sustainable, inclusive and resilient transport and supply systems.

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