Iraq IDP Information Centre (Iraq IIC) The Iraq Internally Displaced Persons Information Centre (Iraq IIC) is an inter-agency initiative that helps to ensure effective two-way communication and accountability between affected communities and humanitarian and development agencies in Iraq.

The Iraq IIC functions as a toll-free hotline which any Iraqi mobile phone subscriber can access by dialling 800 69 999. Operators provide information to callers about the programs of emergency humanitarian aid and development agencies operating in Iraq, and collect information from callers about their current locations, places of origin, and current needs. 

The Iraq IIC circulates information about the urgent needs and priorities of affected populations through the cluster system, to humanitarian agencies, and to other relevant stakeholders to improve the responsiveness and coordination of emergency humanitarian response programming.

The Iraq IIC launched in July 2015 following an inter-agency assessment of information needs amongst displaced communities in Iraq. The survey identified that access to information is a key priority for affected populations, further supporting the growing recognition within the humanitarian field that information is a vital form of aid. Requests for help have connected vulnerable families with assistance, and feedback from callers has identified humanitarian service gap and positively contributed to course correction. 

Call volume has increased steadily since its launch. Following the initiation of a countrywide SMS awareness-raising campaign in December 2015, the Iraq IIC received a dramatic increase in calls, handling 2,248 calls in December 2015, 2,833 calls in January 2016, and 3,143 in February 2016. The Iraq IIC expects this uptick to continue throughout 2016 as the staggered and sustained SMS broadcasts, part of a wider multi-media, multi-platform visibility campaign, raises awareness of the hotline number across Iraq’s eighteen governorates and among the more than 3.3 million displaced persons in the country.

As the Iraq IIC expands its reach over the course of 2016, it will continue to offer a mechanism for emergency-affected populations to receive accurate, life-saving and timely information on humanitarian assistance, and to communicate feedback on the response. Facilitating information coordination and collaboration with clusters while tapping into established referral pathways, the Iraq IIC will maintain service quality by responding to requests for information and assistance and closing the loop on complaints in a timely manner. The Iraq IIC will also conduct evaluation call backs on aid distributions to monitor emergency assistance effectiveness. These measures will facilitate a better humanitarian response, helping to reduce the feelings of isolation, confusion, and mistrust felt among Iraq’s displaced population. Accountability will remain the key cornerstone of the Iraq IIC.

Proposal cost breakdown:

From July to September 2016, IHPF will cover the salaries of 4 operators, bringing the total number of operators during this 3-month period to 9. Of the 9 operators, IHPF will fund 4 operators while co-donors will fund 5 operators. This is the only line item the IHPF will cover from July to Sept 2016.
From Oct 2016 to March 2017, IHPF will cover 100% operational costs, including all personnel costs (1xProject manager, 1xSupervisor, 9xOperators).
Please note that IHPF will:
	fund 100% 4xOperators from July to Sept, bringing the total number of operators during this 3-month period to 9. Support funding from co-donors is paying for 5 operators during this 3-month period. 
	fund 100% operational costs, including all personnel costs (1xProject manager, 1xSupervisor, 9xOperators), from October to March 2017.
As the IHPF funds one line item (4xOperators) from Jul-Sept and all costs from Oct 2016-Mar 2017, the proposal length is 9 months (July 2016 to March 2017).