Module 4: Overview of the Security Risk Assessment (SRA)

module 4 main image — A group of newly arrived Somali refugees waits at the gate of the UNHCR compound to be admitted to Dabaab refugee camp Kenya, October 2008.

Will the peaceful early morning crowd outside the Dadaab office still be there later in the day? Could it grow to become an angry and unruly mob? How can the possibility of this threat be predicted or assessed? What might be done to prevent this from occurring? Or, if it does happen, what steps should be taken to manage the situation and reduce the risk of harm to staff? The Security Risk Assessment is a practical tool aimed at helping managers answer questions like these. It is a systematic approach to organizing and analyzing a complicated array of information in order to better understand the risks being faced and the response measures needed. It does not seek to eliminate subjectivity nor does it purport to offer guaranteed “right and wrong” answers. However, by taking an orderly and comprehensive approach it can lead to more thoughtful and effective decision making. It is a critical step in the Security Risk Management process. This module presents an outline of the Security Risk Assessment process. Each step in the process will be explained in greater detail in subsequent modules, but this module will help you get an overview of the process and see the relationship of the steps to one another. In particular, this module will explain the meaning and relationships among the following activities:

Threat Assessment
Vulnerability Assessment
Risk Analysis
Criticality Assessment
Decide and Implement Measures
Review and Modification of assessment

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