The Research Service helps the ICRC achieve the best possible understanding of its operational and institutional working environment. To that end, it uses a range of tools and internal and external resources to scan media and other public sources of information to provide feedback. The Service also provides comprehensive information on the contexts in which the ICRC operates and offers guidance on sources of information. It plays an essential role in providing context-specific information for delegates before their departure for the field, and in drawing their attention to the services and information sources they can have access to while on a field assignment.

An increasingly structured and systematic approach to tracking external trends and issues enabled the Research Service to provide the ICRC’s management and operational staff in particular with pertinent and timely information throughout 2007. A range of standard products (The ICRC in the Press, Information Bulletin and regular press reviews) were produced on a regular basis and distributed electronically both at headquarters and in the field.

The service also provided documentary support for ICRC field operations in the form of ad hoc thematic and context-related research and environment-scanning products, issued on request or in response to events of particular significance for the ICRC and its work. It cooperated closely with four regional delegations to enhance the ICRC’s capacity to monitor issues by drawing on local, regional and international sources.

Through its library and related services, the ICRC promotes knowledge of its role as a reference organization for IHL and of its mandate and operations among students, teachers, civil society, the media and the general public by providing access to its collection of over 140,000 items (books, periodicals, photographs and videos). An on-line catalogue is accessible through the ICRC’s website.

A two-year programme to digitalize the ICRC’s photograph collection is now complete, and a new project has been launched to make the entire photograph catalogue available on the ICRC web-site. Similarly, virtual access can now be had to 100 print titles from the ICRC library, and e-journals currently available internally will eventually be part of the electronic library on the ICRC website.

A new content management system was purchased in 2007 for use with the upcoming ICRC intranet and new institutional web-site. A prototype has been put in place for the launch of both systems in 2008. The intranet will have the capacity to act as an effective search engine for both internal and external information sources. The implementation of the intranet is a key step in the Directorate’s strategy on information management and flow.


ICRC Annual Report 2007