The decision to activate country-level clusters have traditionally been taken by the ERC and the IASC Principals at global level however, in late 2021, this task was officially delegated to the Emergency Directors Group (EDG) (1.4.2). This is based on the IASC criteria being met and on recommendations from the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC) (or the Resident Coordinator (RC)), which in turn are based on inputs from the sectoral lead agencies and consultations with national and local authorities. See more on the role of the HC (or RC/HC) and the Humanitarian Coordination Team (HCT) in 4.2. 

The HC (or RC/HC), with the HCT, will officially designate the lead agencies for each cluster based on the agencies’ coordination and response capacity, operational presence, and ability to scale up. Mirroring the global arrangement, FAO and WFP will therefore be designated as country FSC CLAs, when applicable. Where possible, they will share leadership with government bodies and/or NGOs (see 3.6.1). If only one agency is operational, it will take the lead role as CLA. 

Responsibility of FAO and WFP: FAO and WFP should proactively engage in discussion, analysis and decision-making regarding the activation of a country FSC based on consultations with the gFSC (where applicable) and relevant partners. Their recommendation should be supported by a preliminary overview and analysis of the context, the needs, and the existing response capacities and wherever feasible, of existing local food security sector coordination arrangements.