15 December 2005: Presentation of the Quality COMPAS in Oxford, UK
In connection with the University of Oxford, Groupe URD organised a conference to present the Quality COMPAS and the issue of quality assurance in humanitarian action. Around sixty participants from major British NGOs as well as students involved in ‘humanitarian’ Masters were able to see the results of 5 years of research by Groupe URD on the subject.

8-9 December 2005: Groupe URD attended the Conference of ECHO partners
A team from Groupe URD attended the meeting of ECHO’s partners on 8 and 9 December 2005 in Brussels. This was a chance to present the Dynamic COMPAS, a new tool being developed by Groupe URD.

8 December 2005: Groupe URD participated in the Rencontres de l’Humanitaire organised by the French Red Cross.
The Rencontres Humanitaires took place at the Institut du Monde Arabe almost a year on from the Tsunami and at the same time as the French Red Cross published their book ‘Tsunami, et après?

13 December 2005: Conference organised in Kabul by the LRRD project team
After a year’s work, the ‘Linking Relief, Rehabilitation and Development’ (LRRD) team organised a conference in Kabul to present their initial results. This focused on the issues of understanding agrarian and urban systems in a post-crisis context. More than 75 people attended this event from international and Afghan NGOs, Ministries and research bodies in place in Afghanistan.

3rd Autumn School on Humanitarian Aid, Plaisians, 22 – 24 September, 2005.
Fundamental issue: “Accreditation: a threat or an opportunity for NGOs?”
Topical issue: ‘Displacing populations: issues and prospects’
During the first two days, around 50 participants from over 20 organisations (AFD, Coordination Sud, ECHO, ICRC, Medair, OXFAM Belgium and Spain, MDM, MSF Netherlands, Handicap International, WHO, HAP-I, World Vision, VSF-CICDA, GREF, etc.) debated the thorny issue of the accreditation of humanitarian organisations and of the quality of programmes. The content of these debates are available in the ‘Actes des Universités’ (in French).
On the last day, current work was presented:
- Current work by Groupe URD on the Dynamic COMPAS.
- Research into displaced populations in Colombia and Sudan.
This gave participants an opportunity to discuss the practical issues of quality and the protection of populations, which are both at the heart of our profession.
Documents related to the 2005 Autumn School (All documents are available in French)
Issue outline: "Accreditation: a threat or an opportunity for NGOs?”
Programme of 2005 Autumn School
Conference report