● Post: Marked “Private & Confidential” to Complaints Management Group, p.o.box 344 Jijiga Head office, Somali Region, Ethiopia.
● Email: fraudmailbox@resilience-relief.org
● Telephone: +251 943 426600 during official office hours and requesting to speak to the Complaints Management Group. The phone is staffed between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday to Friday.
For fraud or whistleblowing complaints, the following channels monitored by the Internal Auditor should be used:
We defines fraud as ‘the theft or misuse of Resilience & Relief’s funds or other resources, by an employee or a third party, which may or may not also involve misstatement of financial documents or records to conceal the theft or misuse.
We define whistleblowing as ‘making a disclosure in the public interest about possible wrongdoing in the workplace.’ The categories of wrongdoing which may constitute malpractice include the following:
The status of international company may be granted to a CA enterprise in any of the following cases:
For suspected safeguarding complaints, the following channels monitored by the safeguarding office in Concern’s head office should be used:
Resilience & Relief has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to sexual harassment, exploitation, abuse and trafficking of children and adults as reflected in our contracts of employment for all staff who commit to adhere to the Code of Conduct and associated policies as part of their terms and conditions of employment (or engagement for consultants, (sub) contractors, relevant suppliers; involvement for volunteers).
All complaints are taken seriously, whether anonymous or not. Confidentiality, safety, dignity, respect and natural justice are core principles applied in how we investigate and address such matters, always with the wishes and best interests of the survivor at the centre of our process.
Resilience & Relief has clear guidelines as to how we address safeguarding reports, and a team of experienced and trained investigators throughout our organisation to respond rapidly to reports of actual or suspected safeguarding concerns. The Safeguarding Office in Resilience & Relief’s Head Office is available to oversee and support responses to such reports.
A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction with a service, action, or behaviour on the part of Resilience & Relief or any of its programme partner organisations. A valid complaint is one about actions for which Resilience & Relief and/or our programme partners are responsible, and must be both relevant to and within the control of Resilience & Relief and/or the partner organisation. Both Resilience & Relief and its partners should be held accountable for the promises and the commitments we make, what we do, and how we do it.
Resilience & Relief cannot respond to a complaint about:
For these types of complaints, we should, in so far as we reasonably can, assist the complainant to make a safe referral to the appropriate body.
Individuals raising complaints about Concern may include, but are not limited to:
Confidentiality is a principle that restricts access to and dissemination of information. Confidentiality helps create an environment in which people are more likely to raise concerns or complaints or to stand in witness against bad practice or incidents of abuse.
People might not raise concerns if they fear reprisal or retaliation from Resilience & Relief or its partner or any other stakeholder in so doing. Confidentiality ensures that information is shared on a strict need-to-know-basis with a limited number of specified people for the purpose of taking action.
The complaints and response process must ensure reasonable confidentiality and security of all relevant records and documents. Breaches of confidentiality will be taken very seriously and may result in disciplinary action against any staff member involved.
Resilience & Relief Complaints Management Group will review and acknowledge the complaint within ten working days on receipt of the complaint.
We will send the complainant an acknowledgment of having received the complaint and give a date when the complainant can expect to be informed about the process being followed to handle the issue. Time frames for handling complaints will vary depending on their nature. We will keep the complainant informed throughout the process.
In the event that the complaint is about an issue that falls outside the control of Resilience & Relief, we will advise the complainant of this in the acknowledgment letter.
Depending on the nature of the complaint, the Complaints Management Group will identify the appropriate person to provide a response.
If the matter can be resolved directly, the designated person will provide a prompt response.
If the matter needs to be investigated, appropriate people within the organisation will be appointed to conduct this confidentially. Only a limited number of persons who need to know about the complaint will be informed. Investigations will be carried out following Resilience & Relief Investigation Guidelines. In instances where appropriate action is required Resilience & Relief reserves the right to keep the action confidential.
No complaint will be ignored and we will treat everyone who makes a complaint with courtesy and respect. In return, we expect complainants to raise their complaints fairly and appropriately. In cases where complainants harass staff, behave abusively or unreasonably pursue their complaint, we reserve the right to withdraw our investigation of their complaint. In all such instances, the complainant will be informed by the Chief Operating Officer that we do not propose to consider further, or correspond about, the complaint or any specific points raised in the complaint and the reasons for it.
