INFORM Severity Index Dashboard

Dataset provided by ACAPS.org

About the ACAPS INFORM Severity Index

The ACAPS INFORM Severity Index is a tool used for assessing and comparing the severity of humanitarian crises globally. It's a collaborative project involving various organizations, including the Assessment Capacities Project (ACAPS), the European Commission, and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC).

Key features of the ACAPS INFORM Severity Index include:

Comprehensive Assessment: It analyzes a wide range of indicators to provide a holistic understanding of the severity of crises. These indicators cover aspects such as the impact on the population, the conditions of affected people, and the complexity of the crisis.
Standardized Metrics: The index uses standardized metrics to ensure consistency and comparability across different crises. This allows for objective assessment and prioritization.
Data-Driven Analysis: The index relies on a variety of data sources, including international organizations, NGOs, government agencies, and media reports, to provide a well-rounded view of each situation.
Regular Updates: The index is updated regularly to reflect the changing dynamics of crises and to provide up-to-date information for decision-makers.
Global Coverage: It covers crises around the world, providing valuable insights for international organizations, governments, and other stakeholders involved in humanitarian response and planning.
Decision-Making Tool: The index is used to inform decisions regarding resource allocation, response planning, and policy formulation in the context of humanitarian emergencies.
Publicly Available: The findings and reports based on the ACAPS INFORM Severity Index are typically available to the public, enhancing transparency and awareness about global humanitarian crises.

Why we use it?

The ACAPS INFORM Severity Index is particularly relevant for organizations like ARAC International Inc., involved in security risk management and humanitarian analysis. It provides a structured and data-driven approach to understanding and responding to complex emergencies, aligning well with frameworks that focus on global security and humanitarian response.

Methodology:

The INFORM Severity Index is a comprehensive index that integrates 31 essential indicators, organized into three key areas: the impact of the crisis, the state of the affected individuals, and the complexity of the situation. Each indicator is evaluated on a scale from 1 to 5. These individual scores are then combined to form components, which are further categorized into the three main dimensions and an overall severity classification, using a specific analytical framework.

The importance of each dimension in determining the overall severity is weighted differently: the impact of the crisis is given a 20% weight, the conditions of the affected population a 50% weight, and the complexity of the situation a 30% weight. These weightings are currently the best approximations and are subject to refinement through expert assessment and statistical techniques. Depending on its total score, a crisis is classified into one of five categories, which range from very low to high severity.

Visit ACAPS website for more information on the INFORM Severity Index.