The UN Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD) is a World Food Programme (WFP) Logistics network that serves both WFP and the broader humanitarian community, including UN agencies, international humanitarian organizations, and governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).  It is known primarily for its pre-positioning, storage and handling of emergency supplies and support equipment through its strategically placed hubs, located in Ghana, UAE, Malaysia, Panama and Italy.

Building on UNHRD Brindisi's success in responding to sudden-onset emergencies over the past six years, WFP has established four additional Humanitarian Response Depots (HRDs) in key strategic locations around the world: Panama City (Panama), Accra (Ghana), Dubai City (Dubai) and Subang (Malaysia). The HRD Network initiative supports WFP in meeting its corporate goal of being prepared to respond to four large scale emergencies at any given time as well as support the emergency response efforts of UN, International, Governmental and Non-Governmental Organisations.

WFP has standardized the depots in the network in terms of their design, stocks and operational protocols. Each depot has the following characteristics:

• Strategic location - all HRDs are located on the premises of an international airport, in close proximity to seaport and surface transport hubs.

• Free storage - the UNHRD network offers free storage to UN, international, governmental and non-governmental organizations.

• Design - the network offers state-of-the-art warehouses with features such as cold chains and assembly facilities. The depots have a minimum of 5,000 m2 of closed storage, 5,000 m2 of open storage and ample space for offices and training.

• Real-time stock tracking - all depots have advanced warehouse management systems that provide real-time status reports of stocks for better supply chain visibility and faster decision making.

• Procurement arrangements - WFP has special arrangements with some suppliers to provide stocks, such as virtual and white stocks (stocks stored at UNHRD premises at supplier's risk) that can be accessed through the UNHRD Network at competitive rates.

• Training facilities - depots offer training facilities with fully equipped indoor/outdoor training environments suitable for emergency simulations.

• Staging areas - all depots serve as regional staging areas through which all in-kind bilateral aid can be channelled and transported to crisis theatres, creating a "pull" rather than a "push" system.

All UNHRD hubs also provide training center facilities. The Brindisi (Italy) hub has been certified as a Centre of Excellence for Training in Logistics.

For more details on UNHRD, please click here to see their brochure.

• Email this page
• PDF version