The emergency pooled fund for oPt, the Emergency Response fund (ERF), was created in August 2007 to provide rapid allocation and disbursement of funds to NGOs and UN agencies to support humanitarian activities at the sudden onset of emergencies.

There are two priorities for ERF funding. One is to provide an immediate response to unforeseen emergencies through life saving interventions and/or preventing the further erosion of livelihood assets and coping mechanisms of the affected communities. The second priority is to strategically fill gaps in funding within a humanitarian response plan until main-stream humanitarian funding is available.

The Fund was initiated with the generous support of Sweden and Spain. Current donors of the ERF also include Ireland, UK, Norway, Netherlands and Switzerland.

The Fund is managed by OCHA oPt, on behalf of the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC), with the technical support of the humanitarian cluster/sector leads and members of a project proposal Review Board.

ERF applications usually take only a few days to process, provided they fulfil strict emergency criteria, reflect priority needs identified by the humanitarian community and address unforeseen gaps in the planned overall response. ERF funding for NGO projects is disbursed in two instalments. The first instalment of 80% of the total grant is disbursed between 10 - 15 working days after the project agreement between the HC and the implementing partner has been signed. The balance is generally disbursed one month after receipt of the final narrative and financial report.