Plan UK joins Disasters Emergency Committee
International children’s charity Plan UK has become the 14th member of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), the umbrella organisation for leading UK aid agencies that helps finance relief for people affected by major disasters in poorer countries.
Plan UK is the first charity to join since Islamic Relief six years ago. DEC membership is capped at 15 places “to ensure effective collective decision making and cost efficiency”.
To qualify for membership, organisations must meet criteria such as being registered for at least five years as a UK humanitarian charity, having a voluntary income of over £4 million a year, and expenditure on overseas emergency work of over £10m per year, applying best practice in governance and submitting fully audited accounts.
DEC Chair Clive Jones said: “The DEC enables the UK’s leading aid agencies to fundraise together effectively for major emergencies in poorer countries. We benefit from each others judgement and learn from our collective experience. We are delighted to have Plan as our newest member agency. Their expertise, global reach and commitment will contribute significantly to the scale and effectiveness of the DEC funded response to future disasters.”
The full list of DEC member agencies is now:
ActionAid
Age UK
British Red Cross
CAFOD
CARE International UK
Christian Aid
Concern Worldwide
Islamic Relief
Merlin
Oxfam
Plan UK
Save the Children
Tearfund
World Vision
The next review of membership will take place in November 2011: this covers any potential new members as well as checking the continuing eligibility of current members.
www.dec.org.uk