Information collection from partners for specific exercises (e.g. capacity mapping) or ad hoc requests is often best undertaken with a simple, user-friendly online survey tool. For such surveys, it is best to make them as quantitative as possible, avoiding lengthy qualitative analysis. There is increasingly internet connectivity during disasters and there are a number of tools that are very useful to stay in contact with the Cluster colleagues; such as Skype, WhatsApp, Slack, Vyber, etc. Whatever platform is selected, try and keep communication to a mínimum and share key information only. There are a number of software packages that can help manage the overall WASH coordination ‘project’, though those described are packages available within UNICEF as the CLA. Depending on the length and size of the response, it may be worth investing in a PM tool, however, this is a decisión to be taken carefully as it can consume alot of time to maintain. Business card templates are very useful but can be hard to source/print at the start and during emergencies. These templates enable the IMO/CC to easily print out their contact details on paper and distribute at meetings without the costs involved in professional printing. It can be very useful to download and store high resolution maps on a phone/tablet before arriving in an emergency situation where there may be no internet connectivity. There are a number of useful apps which enable the download and storage of maps, which means there is no cost to access maps on the road. Note that a phone/tablet GPS will still work with offline maps (identifying the location on the map) making offline mapping very useful in emergency situations. |