NFIs, quality and coordination

1Non-food items

NFIs (essential household items) make it possible to sleep, cook, eat, store water, have light and keep warm. A basic kit often includes:

• Bedding and warmth: blankets, sleeping mats or mattresses, insecticide-treated nets in malaria areas.
• Cooking: at least one large cooking pot with a lid, a basin, a kitchen knife and serving spoons per household, and for each person a plate, a spoon and a cup.
• Water: containers for collection and storage, in liaison with the WASH sector.
• Lighting and energy: solar lamp, fuel or fuel-efficient stove.
• Clothing: two full sets of clothing per person according to Sphere, appropriate to the climate, age and culture.

The contents are decided with households and the cluster: a standard national kit facilitates coordination, but it must take into account cooking habits, the climate and what families already own.

2Winterisation and response to extreme climates

In cold climates, shelter and NFIs become a matter of survival. A winter response is prepared months in advance: shelter insulation (additional tarpaulins, insulation panels, floor insulation), additional thermal blankets, warm clothing, stoves with safe flues, fuel or seasonal cash for heating.

The associated risks must be controlled: fires, carbon monoxide poisoning, debt incurred to buy fuel. In hot climates, by contrast, the aim is ventilation, shade, reflective roofing and orientation of shelters in relation to prevailing winds.

3Quality, logistics, targeting and distribution

A poor-quality item is a waste. The technical specifications of the IFRC and UNHCR (emergency items catalogue) serve as a reference. A quality tarpaulin is made of reinforced, UV-treated woven polyethylene, about 4 × 6 m for the IFRC, with reinforced edges and eyelets; its weight, tear resistance and UV resistance are checked.

• Quality control: pre-shipment and on-receipt inspection, samples, rejection of non-compliant batches.
• Targeting: transparent criteria, discussed with communities, combining damage, vulnerability and tenure status; verified lists and a complaints mechanism.
• Distribution: a safe and accessible site, separate queues if needed, priority for people with reduced mobility, portable kits, timing that allows people to get home before dark.
• Post-distribution monitoring: use, resale, satisfaction, quality problems.

4The Shelter cluster and coordination

At global level, the Global Shelter Cluster is co-chaired by UNHCR for conflict situations and by the IFRC, which convenes coordination in natural disasters. At national level, the Shelter cluster (often merged with NFIs, and sometimes with CCCM) defines with the authorities the strategy, standard kits, transfer values, specifications and the 4W mapping of partners.

There are close links with CCCM (site planning), WASH (latrines, drainage), protection (HLP, gender-based violence, accessibility), early recovery and the cash sector. The area-based approach (or settlements approach) coordinates sectors across a given neighbourhood or territory rather than household by household, which is particularly useful in cities.

5Designing and specifying an NFI kit: from list to technical specification

An NFI kit is designed in three stages: deciding what it must make possible (sleeping warmly, cooking, storing water, having light), translating these functions into items and quantities adapted to household size, and then writing for each item a technical specification that the buyer, the supplier and the inspector understand in the same way. The cluster's standard kit is the starting point; adapting it to the context is the responsibility of each partner, in agreement with the cluster.

Step 1: start from functions and practices

• How do households cook: on three stones, on an improved stove, with gas? What size of pot is needed for the staple dish?
• Where do they sleep: on the ground, on mats, on beds? What is the minimum night-time temperature during the period the kit will be used?
• Which items do households already own according to the assessment, so as to avoid duplicates that are resold at a loss?
• Are there specific needs: menstrual hygiene items (in coordination with WASH), baby items, lighting for people who go to the latrines at night?

Step 2: quantities by household size

A single kit for a household of two and for a household of eleven is not equitable. Common practice is to provide one basic kit per household plus additional items per person or per household size bracket (for example 1 to 3, 4 to 6, and 7 people or more).

Step 3: the specification sheet

The IFRC and UNHCR emergency items catalogues, as well as the United Nations organisations' common catalogue, contain proven specifications. The values below are orders of magnitude to be checked against the current version before any purchase.

Step 4: packaging and transport

A kit must be portable by one person alone over the return journey, or transport support must be provided. Above 20 to 25 kg, plan for splitting the kit, paid porters or delivery for people with reduced mobility. The packaging must be sturdy, reusable if possible, and free of logos that could expose households to risk in sensitive contexts.

What has not been written into the specification cannot be rejected on delivery. An order that mentions only "4 × 6 m tarpaulin" legally allows the supplier to deliver a product without UV-resistant treatment that will be destroyed within three months.

6Winterisation and extreme climates: planning step by step

The winter response is one of the most predictable in humanitarian action: the date of the first cold spells is known months in advance. Yet delays are frequent, because procurement, verification of beneficiary lists and funding are launched too late. A reverse calendar, built backwards from the date of the first frosts, is the central tool.

Typical reverse calendar

The winter package: components

• Shelter insulation: additional tarpaulins, insulation panels for walls and roof, floor insulation (pallets, panels, thick mats), draught-proofing, double door or entrance vestibule.
• Bedding and clothing: additional thermal blankets (often one or two more per person in very cold climates), warm clothing, shoes and socks, with priority for children, older people and sick people.
• Heating: stove with a metal flue pipe exiting through a heat-resistant plate, fuel or cash for fuel.
• Safety: smoke or carbon monoxide detectors where feasible, sand buckets or fire extinguishers per block, household training.

Calculating a seasonal cash value

The starting point is the fuel consumption needed to maintain an acceptable indoor temperature in a typical shelter, multiplied by the length of the cold season and by the local price, plus an amount for clothing. For example: wood-burning stove, an average of 9 kg of wood per day over 120 days, i.e. 1,080 kg; local price USD 0.22 per kg, i.e. about USD 238; plus USD 60 for warm clothing for an average-sized household; value rounded to USD 300, paid in two instalments (before the first cold spells and in mid-winter). This calculation is validated by the cash working group and revised if the fuel price varies by more than 10 to 15%.

Hot climates

Conversely, the aim is shade (double roof or raised roof tarpaulin), cross-ventilation, light-coloured or reflective roofs, orientation of openings according to prevailing winds, and greater internal heights. Tents and uninsulated corrugated iron shelters can be several degrees hotter than the outside temperature and become dangerous for infants and older people.

The quality of a winter response is measured by one date: the date on which the last priority household received its complete package. If that date falls after the first frosts, the response has failed, regardless of the number of items distributed afterwards.

7Quality control, distribution and post-distribution monitoring: the procedures

Quality control at three points

1. Pre-shipment inspection at the supplier's premises, often by an independent inspection company for large orders. Sampling generally follows the ISO 2859-1 standard: for a lot of 2,000 units, general inspection level II, the code letter is K and the sample size is 125 units; with an acceptable quality limit (AQL) of 2.5, the lot is accepted with up to 7 major defects and rejected from 8 upwards. Critical (dangerous) defects are often set at zero tolerance.
2. Inspection on receipt at the warehouse: quantities, condition of packaging, visual checks and measurements on a sample, comparison with the sealed reference sample kept when the contract was awarded.
3. User feedback through post-distribution monitoring: an undetected defect (blankets shedding fibres, pots that warp) triggers a claim against the supplier and a revision of the specification.

Tool: non-conformity report

Organising a distribution site

• Site selection: accessible on foot, safe, shaded or sheltered, with a waiting area, toilets and water, away from places controlled by armed actors.
• One-way flow: reception and information, verification of identity and of the card or code, handover of the kit, complaints and feedback desk, exit. Verification desks process in the order of 40 to 60 households per hour depending on the method.
• Priority queue for older people, persons with disabilities and pregnant women, with transport assistance.
• Team: a site manager, verification staff, handover staff, a protection and complaints focal point, a security and crowd management officer, ideally mixed-sex.
• Timing: start early and finish early enough for everyone to get home before dark; announce the dates through several channels.
• Reconciliation at the end of the day: kits released from stock, kits handed over, kits remaining; any discrepancy is explained and signed off.

Post-distribution monitoring

It is carried out two to six weeks after the distribution. For a population of 2,000 households, with 95% confidence and a 5% margin of error, the sample is about 323 households after finite population correction, rounded up to 355 with 10% non-response. The questionnaire covers actual receipt, perceived quality, use, resale or sharing, safety during the distribution and on the way home, awareness of the complaints mechanism and unmet needs. Some of the interviews are conducted by people who did not take part in the distribution.

8Full example: winterisation of the Telmar Nord site

Fictional context. The Telmar Nord displacement site hosts 11,000 people, i.e. 2,000 households of 5.5 people on average, in a mountain valley where night-time temperatures fall to -12 °C from December to March. The shelters are two-year-old family tents and tarpaulin shelters on timber frames. Your NGO is the shelter and NFI partner designated by the cluster for this site. It is the end of June; the first frosts are expected in mid-November.

July: assessment and strategy

The shelter condition assessment, carried out with the site management agency, classifies 600 tents as beyond repair (torn canvas, broken frame), 900 shelters as suitable for insulation and 500 shelters as in acceptable condition. Monitoring of the previous winter shows 14 fires, 3 of them serious, and 9 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning. Markets in the neighbouring town sell firewood and charcoal, but the price doubles in January. The strategy validated by the cluster combines: replacement of the 600 tents with insulated timber shelters, an insulation kit for 900 shelters, a winter NFI kit for all 2,000 households, and seasonal cash for fuel.

Contents of the winter NFI kit

The seasonal cash is set at USD 300 per household according to the calculation in the previous section, in two instalments of USD 150 (mid-November and mid-January). The 2,000 kits represent about USD 398,600, and the seasonal cash USD 600,000.

August to October: procurement, quality, lists

• Tender launched on 1 August, contract awarded on 25 August with sealed samples.
• Pre-shipment inspection of blankets: out of 125 units checked, 11 are below the minimum weight. As the rejection threshold is 8 for an AQL of 2.5, the lot is rejected; the supplier replaces it within 21 days. The reverse calendar included a four-week buffer, which absorbs this delay.
• Updating of lists with site management: 2,000 households verified, 74 new arrivals added, 31 departures removed, 12 disputed cases reviewed by the complaints committee.
• Training of 60 site volunteers on fire safety and carbon monoxide; they will conduct door-to-door visits when the stoves are handed over.

November: distribution

Distribution over four days, 500 households per day, block by block. Two verification desks and one priority desk, 22 staff on site per day, home delivery for 140 households identified as unable to transport their kits. Daily reconciliation: a discrepancy of 3 kits on day 2, explained by a data entry error, corrected and documented. Stoves are installed by teams of two technicians who check the flue outlet and the distance from the walls; 1,980 installations are completed in two weeks.

December: post-distribution monitoring and adjustments

Winter review: 4 fires, none of them serious, and 1 mild poisoning, compared with 14 fires and 9 poisonings the previous winter. The final report to the donor presents these results, the causes of the delay with the blankets, the revision of the second instalment and recommendations for the following year.

The success of this example rests on three choices: a reverse calendar with a buffer, a quality inspection that had the courage to reject a lot, and monitoring that triggered an adjustment of the cash before the end of winter.

9Working with the Shelter Cluster day to day

The cluster's products and what they require of partners

Reporting correctly to the 4W

• Count the households and people actually assisted, without double counting when the same household receives several types of assistance: the reach indicator counts each person once, while activity indicators count each instance of assistance.
• Distinguish between planned, ongoing and completed.
• Use the official geographic codes (P-codes) so that maps are accurate.
• Report gaps between targets and achievements, with their causes.

Inter-sector coordination: who does what

At global level, the Global Shelter Cluster is co-led by UNHCR for conflict situations and by the IFRC, which acts as convener for natural disasters. At national level, the cluster lead agency appoints a coordinator, often supported by a co-facilitator from an NGO and an information management officer. In many countries, the cluster is co-chaired by a government ministry, which facilitates alignment with national building codes and land policies.

10Common mistakes, contextual variations, interview questions and references

Common mistakes

• Imported standard kit without adaptation: pots too small for the staple dish, blankets unsuited to a hot climate, items households already own.
• Vague specification, which makes it impossible to reject a non-compliant product.
• No sealed reference sample at the time the contract is awarded.
• Distribution ending after nightfall, exposing women and children on the way home.
• Kits that are too heavy, with no transport support for people living alone or older people.
• Stock reconciliation not done at the end of the day: discrepancies become impossible to explain a week later and the audit classifies them as unjustified losses.
• Post-distribution monitoring used for counting, not learning: the results change neither the kits, nor the cash value, nor the procedures.
• Winter response launched in October instead of April.

What auditors and evaluators look at

• A complete paper trail: purchase request, tender, specifications, inspection report, delivery notes, stock cards, signed or digitally validated distribution lists, reconciliations.
• Compliance with the donor's and the organisation's procurement thresholds and procedures.
• Handling of non-conformities and losses.
• Actual use of the results of post-distribution monitoring and of the complaints mechanism.

Contextual variations

Interview questions

1. "A lot of blankets arrives below specification three weeks before winter. What do you do?" Quarantine, non-conformity report, notification to the supplier with a replacement deadline, search for fallback solutions (loan from another partner's stock via the cluster, compliant local purchase), transparent information to the donor; a dangerous or ineffective product is not distributed.
2. "How do you organise a distribution of 2,000 kits?" Verified lists, prior communication, safe site, one-way flow, priority queue, mixed-sex team, timing, daily reconciliation, complaints mechanism, post-distribution monitoring.
3. "What do you do if 30% of items are resold?" Understand why (unneeded items, more urgent needs, quality), adapt the kit or switch to cash; do not penalise households.
4. "What data do you report to the cluster, and how?" Monthly 4W, households and people without double counting, disaggregation by sex, age and disability, official geographic codes, planned, ongoing and completed.
5. "How do you reduce fire risks in a site in winter?" Firebreaks and spacing with CCCM, stoves with compliant flue pipes, verified installation, household training, detectors, firefighting equipment per block, incident monitoring.

Key references

• Sphere Handbook 2018, household items standard and guidance notes.
• IFRC and ICRC Emergency Items Catalogue and UNHCR Emergency Relief Items Catalogue.
• Common catalogue of relief items of United Nations organisations.
• Global Shelter Cluster: winterisation guidance and technical notes on NFIs.
• ISO 2859-1 standard on sampling procedures for inspection by attributes.
• CALP: guidance on post-distribution monitoring and cash transfers.
• IASC: Reference Module for Cluster Coordination at Country Level.