It’s a warm reunion between Pascalle Grotenhuis and Garance Reus-Deelder in an office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They immediately dive into an animated conversation about a meeting they had a year earlier, in the most unlikely of places: a refugee camp near Malakal, South Sudan, on the border with Sudan. Garance, Chair of the Board of Supervisors of the Dutch Relief Alliance (DRA) on behalf of Plan International, was there visiting the Joint Response.

Garance: “It was such a distinct moment: in the heat and chaos of an overcrowded refugee camp … I looked up and there you were!”

Pascalle Grotenhuis, Director-General for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: “Yes, it was surreal! I had just landed in this tiny plane. I was so struck by the place – by the sheer number of refugees who had fled across that wild river from Sudan and ended up there. At the entrance, a whiteboard listed the numbers in detail. That really hits you… And suddenly, there you were”

After that, the two together visited the South Sudan Joint Response programme that supports young girls in the camp in learning a trade and becoming more self reliant.

Pascalle: “You really see the link between humanitarian action and development. The camp is meant to be temporary, but people end up staying for years. That’s exactly where the Joint Response gives young girls the opportunity to learn skills – sewing, entrepreneurship – and that brings real perspective.”

Was there a moment that really touched you?

Pascalle: “Definitely. A girl – I think her name was Mary – came up to me and asked if she could have her own sewing machine.”

Garance: “I remember that moment so well. Providing support that truly fits a person’s needs is incredibly important. But it can be challenging to achieve in practice.”

Pascalle: “Yes, because she explained so clearly why she needed it: she had a skill, wanted to grow, to sell her work, to stand on her own feet. That really moved me. It showed me that hope isn’t something abstract – it’s real, something quite tangible.”

What, for you, defines DRA?

Pascalle: “For me, it’s the connection with the ministry. What started as an initiative is now a fully-fledged strategic partnership. We’ve become extensions of each other, working towards the same goals. It’s solid, even future-proof. Other countries – Sweden, Spain, South Korea – are watching our model with interest. And rightly so.”

Garance: “I feel the same. It goes way beyond a funding relationship. Our collaboration runs across different areas. Just yesterday, we had a meeting here at the ministry on the strategy for humanitarian assistance in the context of stability, security and also about humanitarian access. Embassies play a key role. Over the past ten years, we’ve built up a kind of ecosystem…where we can find each other quickly. Take Gaza – despite the almost impossible political context, we manage to deliver humanitarian assistance. We continue to work together to regain access and provide life-saving assistance. That only works when there’s mutual trust.”

You said ‘strategic partnership’. What makes it strategic?

Pascalle: “I think the most strategic element is the localisation process… the Dutch Relief Alliance channels around 40% of the budget through local organisations?”

Garance: “Yes, and in some countries it even exceeds 50%.”

Pascalle: “At the ministry – and in the political arena too – we see localisation as hugely important.”

Garance: “Absolutely essential. Especially with how volatile the situation is in so many countries now. I was actually supposed to be in Sudan at this moment – the biggest forgotten crisis, if you ask me – but the trip was cancelled at the last minute. Just a week ago, things seemed stable, and then suddenly: Port Sudan was under attack. Fuel depots blown up, airports shut down. It’s a volatile environment, and that means you need to be agile and take risks. And you can only be agile with flexible, multi-year funding – otherwise you’re rewriting your plans every time something changes. And that only works if the donor trusts you.”

Pascalle: “That trust is definitely there.”

Garance: “And about localisation – our Joint Response in Sudan kept going in recent years, despite all the unrest and violence. How? Because we have incredibly strong Sudanese partners who consistently get the space – from us and from the ministry – to move with the shifting refugee populations, to start over, to adapt their activities.”

Pascalle nods: “That trust has grown because we have open conversations: we talk about dilemmas, about what’s going well and what isn’t. We find each other quickly – whether by phone or WhatsApp.”

Garance: “That’s what allows us to react fast. After the recent earthquake in Myanmar, for example, we were able to start delivering support within 72 hours.”

Pascalle: “And that’s a huge win for us –and politically, too. The minister can stand up in Parliament and say: through our strategic partnership we are there on the ground.”

Is this unique?

Pascalle: “It’s a unique partnership. We could also learn from this for other areas, for instance we could use a DRA for SRHR in the Sahel.”

We just talked about the bridge between emergency assistance and development. What are your thoughts on that?

Garance: “That line is fading – and rightly so. Emergency assistance is rarely just short-term anymore. At first, you support people on the move with food, water, shelter. But many displaced people end up staying in camps for years. You’ve got to offer perspective. That too is part of the humanitarian mandate – helping people build a stable future. That includes preparing communities for future crises. Building resilience.”

Is it a dilemma that this part of aid isn’t more visible?

Pascalle: “Absolutely. You don’t necessarily want to plant a Dutch flag at the scene of a disaster, but you do want to show taxpayers what we’re doing and why. This is public money, after all. At the ministry, we’re thinking hard about how to communicate our policies. Not just to politicians, but to taxpayers, to a wider public. We want to reach out to the wider public, and have stories about development cooperation, for instance in widespread Dutch lifestyle magazines like Libelle and Margriet.”

Finally: you said other countries are interested in the DRA model. What advice would you give them?

Pascalle: “Sit down together at the start. Talk openly about risk-sharing, about your shared agenda, and what you expect from each other. Be honest about doubts and dilemmas.”

Garance: “And don’t make it a one-year thing. Commit for five or ten years. That’s what makes it a real partnership.”

Pascalle: “Yeah, DRA is living proof of that.”

Photo: Pascalle and Garance in South Sudan – 2024