The Humanitarian Leadership Academy (HLA) and Save the Children in Uganda hosted the Humanitarian Xchange (HX) in Kampala under the theme, “Locally Led Response in East Africa – Adaptation and Resilience.” HX serves as a platform to bridge the gap between international humanitarian actors and local responders, ensuring that crisis-affected communities have a direct voice in shaping humanitarian action.
The Humanitarian Exchange (HX) is a dynamic initiative designed to create a collaborative space for knowledge-sharing, peer learning, and cross-sectoral dialogue among humanitarian practitioners, local responders, donors, and researchers.
HX serves as a platform to bridge the gap between international humanitarian actors and local responders, ensuring that crisis-affected communities have a direct voice in shaping humanitarian action.
The Humanitarian Exchange (HX) Kampala event served as a platform for diaspora organisations, representatives from the Sudan response, local organisations working on Sudan and refugee-related issues, and international humanitarian stakeholders to engage in meaningful knowledge-sharing. The event will explore key challenges, draw lessons from the Sudan response and broader refugee response mechanisms in East Africa, and identify practical solutions to promote a more inclusive and locally driven humanitarian response model. Additionally, it will focus on how humanitarian actors can adapt to the rapidly evolving aid landscape and build stronger resilience to future crises.
Famari Barro, Country Director at Save the Children Uganda said:
“The world is at a pivotal moment in humanitarian response, particularly in East Africa, where the impacts of conflict and climate change are intensifying. We are delighted to work with the Humanitarian Leadership Academy to host HX Kampala - which offers a vital space for local leaders and organizations to reflect, collaborate, and align efforts to build more resilient and adaptive responses.”
Participants from Uganda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, and over 21 countries attended the exchange. Speakers represented a wide range of perspectives—including refugee-led organizations, academia, NGOs, and INGOs—addressing topics such as the Sudan crisis, youth engagement, sustainability, and more.
Nancy Mureti, Head of Regional Centers at the Humanitarian Leadership Academy said: “This is a unique opportunity to share challenges, successes, and next steps. Locally led response is the cornerstone of lasting change. These two days will be impactful for all participants, both in-person and online.”
The conference focused on key areas such as innovation in humanitarian work, collaboration between humanitarian, development, and peace efforts, and the role of diaspora communities. It will also highlight youth involvement, sharing of skills and knowledge in crisis situations, support for locally led advocacy, and the impact of climate change, conflict, and displacement.
