Source description last updated: 7 December 2020

In brief: The British & Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group (BAAG) is a London-based British and Irish umbrella non-profit organisation founded in 1987 aiming to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of aid organisations in Afghanistan.

Coverage on ecoi.net:

Monthly Reports and other relevant reports.

Covered monthly on ecoi.net, for Afghanistan.

Mission/Mandate/Objectives:

BAAG is an “advocacy and networking agency which aims to support humanitarian and development programmes in Afghanistan” (BAAG website: About us, undated). “Our Vision is to contribute to an environment where Afghans can take control of their own development and bring about a just and peaceful society.” (BAAG website: What we do, undated)

“The objectives of BAAG are the advancement of any charitable purposes for the relief of poverty, distress and hardship among the people of Afghanistan and refugees from Afghanistan, in particular by promoting effectiveness and efficiency of the voluntary sector organisations, and other institutions that are involved in the delivery of humanitarian and development aid.” (BAAG: BAAG (British And Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group) Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year Ended 31 March 2019, 2019, p. 1)

“We seek to put our vision into practice by: Bringing member agencies and the wider relief and development community together to advocate continued international commitment to the development of Afghanistan; Sharing of information and knowledge to improve policy debate and decision making processes with a particular emphasis on ensuring that those processes reflect the views, needs and aspirations of the Afghan people; Enhancing the abilities of Afghan civil society in influencing national and international policies on Afghanistan.” (BAAG website: What we do, undated)

“We work closely with Afghan civil society groups [...]. Founded in 1987, we currently have 28 member agencies” (BAAG website: About us, undated). “BAAG has grown to include most of the major British and Irish aid and development agencies working in Afghanistan” (BAAG website: Who we work with, undated).

Funding:

“BAAG [...] has received funding from the [former] Department for International Development, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Irish Aid” (BAAG: Who we work with, undated). It also collects membership fees from its member agencies (BAAG: BAAG (British And Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group) Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year Ended 31 March 2019, 2019, p. 3).

Scope of reporting:

Geographic focus: Afghanistan

Thematic focus: Humanitarian issues, health & education, human rights, peacebuilding, civil society, development & governance, women & girls

Methodology:

Monthly Reports draw on publicly available material such as media reports, studies conducted by international organisations and information published by the Afghan state institutions. Sources may be mentioned in the text body (especially when referring to studies or survey findings). Meanwhile, information on events reported in the media may be left unreferenced. (see, for example, BAAG: Afghanistan in December 2019, 2 January 2020 and BAAG: Afghanistan in November 2019, 12 December 2019)

For other reports, information may be gathered through questionnaire-based interviews with persons of concern, with questions taking account of both quantitative data and qualitative information. Interviews may be held face-to-face or by phone/email. Interviews may be conducted by BAAG’s (local) partners (BAAG: Mapping of Disabled Persons' Organisations (DPOs) in Afghanistan, March 2019, pp. 5–6). In addition to the collection and processing of empirical data, desk research in public sources may be conducted in order to cross-check the findings. (see, for example, BAAG/ACDEO: The Family Support Helpline: Report a Gender Based Violence in Five Provinces of Afghanistan, June 2020, pp. 8 and 49–51).

Language of publication:

English

 

All links accessed 7 December 2020.