Cluster coordination at subnational level

Subnational cluster presence

The total number of subnational clusters, sectors, and AoRs increased from 1,011 in 2022 to 1,153 in 2023, indicating an overall expansion in subnational coordination. Subnational cluster coordination took place across 322 locations and 76 per cent of all clusters globally maintained a subnational presence, consistent with the proportion observed in 2022. The Gender-Based Violence Area of Responsibility (AoR), Health, Child Protection AoR, WASH, and Education had the largest number of subnational clusters, consistent with the patterns observed in 2022.

Operations with the highest number of subnational clusters in 2023 included Sudan (112), South Sudan (109), Ethiopia (93), and Somalia (90). Sudan had the highest number of subnational clusters overall, closely followed by South Sudan and Ethiopia. The operations with the most notable increases in subnational cluster presence included Ethiopia and Venezuela (+8 each), and Yemen and Ukraine (+7 each). Conversely, notable reductions in subnational cluster presence were seen in Colombia (-17), Haiti (-8), South Sudan (-5), and Myanmar, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (-3 each).

Subnational cluster leadership

In 2023, United Nations entities held 56 per cent of lead, co-lead, and co-chair roles for clusters at sub-national level, marking a slight increase from 54 per cent in 2022. International NGOs held 16 per cent of subnational cluster leadership roles in 2023, a decrease compared to 19 per cent in 2022. Similarly, national NGOs held 8 per cent of these roles, also down from 9 per cent in the previous year. The Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement assumed a small role in cluster leadership at the sub-national level for the first time, accounting for 0.5 per cent of the total. Significantly, the prominence of local/national authorities in sub-national cluster leadership positions grew, as they filled 20 per cent of subnational cluster leadership roles in 2023, up from 18 per cent in 2022.

Subnational cluster leadership roles by organisation type (leads, co-leads and co-chairs) – 2021 to 2023

Subnational cluster coordinator capacity

In 2023, there was a small but notable increase in the presence of dedicated subnational cluster coordinators, with 29 per cent of clusters having a dedicated coordinator (including surge capacity), up from 22 per cent in 2022, and partial coverage remaining at 5 per cent. However, despite reducing slightly—from 67 per cent in 2022 to 62 per cent in 2023—the significant majority of cluster coordinators at sub-national level were double-hatting. Positions that were vacant or had no designated coordinator decreased slightly to 4 per cent in 2023. Countries with the highest levels of dedicated subnational cluster coordinators included Mozambique (70 per cent), Haiti (62 per cent), Ukraine (62 per cent), Honduras (57 per cent), and Afghanistan (57 per cent). Among operations with the largest number of subnational clusters, Ethiopia (53 per cent), Somalia (23 per cent), and South Sudan (21 per cent) had the highest percentage of dedicated sub-national cluster coordinators.

Subnational cluster coordination capacity (leads, co-leads and co-chairs) – 2021 to 2023

Subnational cluster capacity in information management

Dedicated information management officers (IMOs) were present in just 8 per cent of subnational clusters, reflecting a slight increase from 6 per cent in 2022. Double-hatting IMOs saw a decrease to 12 per cent, down from 14 per cent in the previous year, while partial information management coverage decreased from 4 per cent to 1 per cent. This meant that 79 per cent of sub-national clusters had vacant or no IM coverage. Countries with the highest levels of dedicated subnational IMOs in 2023 included Mozambique (40 per cent), Yemen (27 per cent), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (26 per cent), and Haiti (23 per cent).

Subnational cluster information management capacity (leads, co-leads and co-chairs) – 2021 to 2023

Subnational cluster dedicated coordinator and information management capacity by location (leads, co-leads and co-chairs) – 2023

Subnational cluster dedicated coordinator and information management capacity by cluster (leads, co-leads and co-chairs) – 2023