Why have a global strategic advisory group
The Logistics Cluster is a community of partners actively working to overcome logistics constraints and to drive best practices and solutions aimed at improving the humanitarian response to emergencies.
Partnership is a core value of the cluster. As highlighted in the 2016-2021 Strategy, the Logistics Cluster is built on partnership, and as such it strives to involve a diverse and representative group of humanitarian actors, on the global, regional and local levels, that steers its strategic direction, allowing true involvement and ownership by partner organisations.
Since 2006, the biannual Logistics Cluster Global Meetings (GLMs) have been the fora for organisations to discuss common issues and experiences and take joint strategic decisions on the cluster governance. During the meetings in 2016 it was decided by large majority to create a Strategic Advisory Group (SAG).
The growing participation and involvement of partners and the increased number of operations called for stronger and better structured governance, hence the SAG was established to foster shared ownership of the cluster and improve decision making.
Structure
The overall objective of the SAG, as defined by the ToR, is to promote and drive the implementation of the strategy, ensuring that the decisions taken and the pursuing actions represent the diversity of the cluster partners.
The SAG is composed of eight members elected for two years. The Global Logistics Cluster Coordinator is the Fixed Chair of the SAG. The Chair only votes as tie breaker. WFP, as the Lead Agency of the cluster, has a permanent seat. NGOs and Governmental Organisations have three and two seats respectively. Representatives are elected during the GLM. One Field Logistics Cluster Coordinator is also elected to participate to the SAG as an observer.
The SAG meets twice a year in conjunction with the GLMs in addition to monthly teleconferences. Minutes and other pertinent documents are shared on this page. SAG members can be contacted regarding the strategy, governance and core functions of the Logistics Cluster.
Non Governmental Organisations
WFP
Susan Hodgson
Head of Humanitarian Supply Chain, Save the Children.
Susan began her career in the British Army, serving for 22 years in locations such as Hong Kong, Nepal, Germany, Cyprus, Sierra Leone and Iraq. She then transitioned into the humanitarian sector, working with a range of organisations, including the American Refugee Council, International Rescue Committee, Concern and GOAL across various functions including programme, logistics, security and operations as well as in country management. Sue took on her current role as Head of Humanitarian Supply Chain for Save the Children in 2017, where she leads a team working to make improvements in the humanitarian supply chain.
Fabrice Perrot
Director of Logistics, Solidarités International.
Fabrice began his career in social work, managing socio-cultural organisations in rural and urban communities in France before moving in to the humanitarian sector in 2010. During his time with Solidarités International, Fabrice has worked as Head of Base and Field Coordinator in DRC, Haiti and Bangladesh, as well overseeing logistics coordination for West Africa and Haiti. He has headed up the logistics department since 2014, and was appointed to his current role of Logistics Director in 2017, now overseeing four departments: Supply Chain, Operational Logistics, IT and Information Systems, and Facility Management.
Vacant
There is a currently a vacant NGO seat on the SAG .
We would like to call for nominations for this post ahead of the upcoming Logistics Cluster Global Meeting on 24-26 September, where the vote will take place. Expressions of interest should be submitted by 2 September COB at the latest to sag-logs@logcluster.org.
Jakob Kern
Director of Supply Chain, World Food Programme.
A qualified civil engineer, Jakob Kern spent ten years working on civil engineering projects across several countries before joining WFP in 1998 as Head of Special Operation in Liberia. In 2001, Jakob moved to Eritrea followed by a posting in DPR Korea as Deputy Country Director in 2003. In 2006, he was appointed Deputy Chief Information Officer before becoming Chief Information Officer in 2012. Jakob then moved to Syria in 2016, where he spent two and a half years as WFP Representative and Country Director, working in one of the largest and most complex humanitarian emergency operations in the world. Jakob took up the post of Director of Supply Chain Division based in WFP Headquarters in Rome in 2018.
Governmental Organisations
Fixed Chair
Field Cluster Coordinator
Didier Merckx
Team Leader, Transport and Logistics & ECHO Flights, European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO).
Originally working as an industrial engineer, Didier joined ECHO in April 1994 and has twenty-five years of professional experience in the humanitarian and development sectors. During his time with ECHO, Didier spent five years with the EU delegation in Kinshasa, DRC as well as working as a Desk Officer for several countries in Central Asia, North and Southern Caucasus and Central Africa. Most recently, Didier has worked on logistics, dealing with the ECHO Flight and UNHAS projects and successively joining the unit dealing with EU Civil Protection mechanisms.
Theo Lingens
Deputy Head of Logistics Division, German Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW).
Theo first started working in humanitarian logistics as a volunteer with the German Red Cross, with his first deployment a mission to support refugees from the German Democratic Republic. He then became a permanent staff member of the Red Cross in 1990, deploying on several missions for the German Red Cross, International Federation of Red Cross and International Committee of the Red Cross. Since 2002, Theo has worked in THW Headquarters in Germany, responsible for all logistics issues on THW Missions abroad. Theo has been an active participant in Logistics Cluster activities since 2005 following the Humanitarian Reform.
Stephen Cahill
Global Logistics Cluster Coordinator, World Food Programme.
Stephen has been Global Logistics Cluster Coordinator since September 2015. Prior to joining WFP, he worked extensively in South America and the Middle East in shipping, also working as a director at a major international shipping company in London. Joining WFP in 2004, he has worked across a number of emergency responses, including the Ebola response in Sierra Leone, the Typhoon Haiyan response in the Philippines, and most recently in Mozambique in response to Cyclone Idai. Prior to his appointment as Global Logistics Cluster Coordinator, Stephen was Head of Logistics for WFP Ethiopia, WFP’s largest operation worldwide at the time.
Fiona Lithgow
Logistics Cluster Coordinator, South Sudan.
Fiona has been the Logistics Cluster Coordinator in South Sudan since 2014. Fiona originally worked in operations management in the private sector in her home country of New Zealand, before transitioning to the humanitarian sector where she worked with NGOs in Uganda and UNICEF in Sri Lanka for three years prior to joining WFP in 2010. Since then, she has worked on logistics operations in DRC, the Philippines, South Sudan and in the Regional Bureau for East Africa in Nairobi, before taking up her current role as Logistics Cluster Coordinator in South Sudan. There she manages the Logistics Cluster’s largest team in one of its most complex operations. Fiona holds a bachelor’s degree in science and a Post Graduate Diploma in Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
Meeting Minutes
2019
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Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 30 August 2019
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09 September 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 1 August 2019
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16 August 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 18 June 2019
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25 June 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 15 May 2019
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10 June 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 12 April 2019
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25 April 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 26 February 2019
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06 March 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 7 February 2019
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25 February 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 16 January 2019
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22 January 2019 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 19 December 2018
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03 January 2019
2018
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Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 7 November 2018
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13 November 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 19 September 2018
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28 September 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 29 May 2018
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11 June 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 23 May 2018
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04 June 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 16 May 2018
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04 June 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 2 May 2018
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14 May 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 6 April 2018
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13 April 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 28 March 2018
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05 April 2018 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 8 February 2018
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19 February 2018
2017
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Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 30 November 2017
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18 December 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 28 November 2017
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18 December 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 16 November 2017
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24 November 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 25 October 2017
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08 November 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 27 September 2017
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04 October 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 12 September 2017
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19 September 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 13 July 2017
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01 September 2017 -
Global Logistics Cluster - SAG - Meeting Minutes, 6 June 2017
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31 August 2017