Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development

ACTED's approach is to "go the last mile", an approach rooted in ACTED's history: ACTED was born in Kabul against the backdrop of the forgotten crisis of Afghanistan, as the result of a will to go where others did not want to go, and to act differently - with an area-based approach, no mandate restriction, and by investing in local knowledge and expertise, promoting a "Think outside the box" approach.

ACTED supports vulnerable communities in hard-to-reach areas throughout the world and accompanying them in building a better future by providing a response adapted to specific needs. By ensuring the link between Emergency, Rehabilitation and Development, ACTED's teams guarantee that interventions made in a situation of crisis are useful and sustainable, because only long-term support – by remaining in the area post emergency and involving communities – can end the poverty cycle and pave the way towards sustainable and inclusive growth.

With more than 25 years experience working closest to the needs of the most vulnerable worldwide, ACTED contributes to reaching the Global Goals, advocating for an integrated approach to humanitarian action, for co-construction and global partnerships towards the sustainable development of territories.

ACTED is a multisectorial NGO that was created with a no mandate restriction to allow flexibility in providing the most adapted response to concrete needs in each situation. In line with its 3Zero vision, ACTED’s sectors of intervention include:

In emergencies, ACTED responds to save lives, with special attention to the most vulnerable and marginalized. ACTED’s humanitarian response includes preparedness and early action, emergency response, recovery, and encourages future resilience and equitable development.

Access to basic services includes basic access to drinking water, basic sanitation and hygiene facilities, essential health care, education (as a minimum primary school education), energy, social welfare schemes (commonly referred to as safety nets) and basic mobility and in urban contexts additionally access to basic waste collection services and broadband internet access. Activities under this thematic area aim at improving quality and coverage of services offered by public (usually national and sub-national government actors and agencies), private (e.g. service provider companies) or philanthropic (such as NGOs in the absence of governmental or private service providers) actors to ensure they can meet basic needs.

Ensuring individuals have adequate skills and capacities to access available livelihood opportunities, and that markets are able to offer decent employment or self-employment opportunities for unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled individuals. Inclusive economic opportunities mean that they should be in the sectors in which the poor work (e.g. agriculture); occur in places where the poor live (e.g. undeveloped areas with few resources); use the factors of production that the poor possess (e.g. unskilled labour); and reduce the prices of consumption items that the poor consume (e.g. food, fuel and clothing).

A circular economy is a systemic approach to economic development designed to benefit businesses, society, and the environment. In contrast to the 'take-make-waste' linear model, a circular economy is regenerative by design and aims to gradually decouple growth from the consumption of finite resources. It is based on three principles: 1. Design out waste and pollution; 2. Keep products and materials in use; and 3. Regenerate natural systems. Circular systems employ reuse, sharing, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling to create a close-loop system, minimizing the use of resource inputs and the creation of waste, pollution and carbon emissions.

Construction, rehabilitation or retrofitting of infrastructure (beyond household level) for production of green energy or for more efficient resource use and consumption. Such infrastructure can improve environmental conditions and therefore people’s health and quality of life. It also supports a green economy, creates job opportunities and enhances biodiversity.

"Greening personal lives" by promoting lifestyle changes and build momentum for systemic change to mitigate climate change.

Human activities that adversely affect ecosystem resilience such as reduction of biodiversity, exploitation of natural resources, pollution, land use, and anthropogenic climate change are increasingly causing regime shifts in ecosystems, often to less desirable and degraded conditions. ACTED aims to ensure that ecosystems and natural resources are regenerated, consumed and protected in a more sustainable manner so that local populations can responsibly benefit from them to meet their needs while conserving the ecosystems for future generations.

Government institutions are more accountable and responsible to the needs of citizens. Citizens and civil society are empowered to participate in management of collective resources and governance. While empowering citizens to make demands and hold to account those who are meant to be responsible for delivering services and at the same time supporting local public institutions to provide better, more effective services to their constituents, ACTED specifically encourages different stakeholders – from groups of citizens, CSOs and private sector to (local) governments and supportive sector institutions – to work effectively together in co-constructing ways to act collectively and in their own best interest and thus be agents in, dynamic development processes.

ACTED aims to prevent conflict, support post-conflict political stabilization and promote protective living environments by improving trust between and within communities, reducing risk of violence, preventing outbreak of conflict and promoting basic principles of the rule of law such as access to justice so that people are able to have their voice heard, exercise their rights, challenge discrimination or hold decision-makers accountable.

ACTED has responded to some of the main humanitarian crises over the past 25 years, in countries and areas including Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, the DRC, the Central African Republic, Somalia and South Sudan, among others.