Putting survivors first: new guidance for SEAH investigations released

28 April 2022

Today, CHS Alliance released its new Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment (SEAH) Investigation Guide: Recommended Practice for the Humanitarian and Development Sector.

“This essential guide provides humanitarian and development organisations with best-practice advice on how to conduct professional investigations into reports of sexual misconduct,” said Andrew McLoughlin, CHS Alliance Project Manager. “Most significantly, it emphasises the importance of putting the needs of survivors at the heart of investigation processes.”

Initially released in English, the guide will be available in French, Spanish, Arabic, Ukrainian, Polish,  Urdu and Bengali versions.

It replaces previous guidance published by the CHS Alliance and is the cornerstone of CHS Alliance’s new Investigator Qualification Training Scheme (IQTS Scheme).  The Scheme is a collaborative effort between CHS Alliance, Humentum and the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to develop a training scheme to improve the quality of safeguarding investigations carried out by NGOs and international bodies.

The foundation level of the IQTS Scheme will be available for free on Disaster Ready’s learning platform and will also be available to registered users of Humentum’s Learning Services platform.

Access the SEAH Investigation Guide: Recommended Practice for the Humanitarian and Development Sector and accompanying Investigators’ Toolkit, which provides useful templates and tools for those conducting investigations.

Practitioners interested in developing their SEAH investigative skills are invited to register their interest in the scheme or contact our training team at training@chsalliance.org.