Conducting the meeting and making the agreement hold

1Conducting the meeting

A negotiation meeting generally has five stages:

1. Greeting and introduction: introduce yourself and the organisation and its mandate in a few simple sentences; thank the counterpart.
2. Island of agreement: start from shared facts and values.
3. Listening: let the counterpart set out their position and concerns; ask open questions ("What worries you?").
4. Options: propose several solutions that meet their concerns and your objectives.
5. Conclusion: restate what has been agreed, who does what and when.

Respect local codes (greetings, time spent, tea, hierarchy), dress appropriately and preferably go in pairs: one person speaks, the other observes and takes notes after the meeting.

2Active listening and working with an interpreter

Active listening means showing that you have understood before replying: rephrasing ("If I understand correctly, you are worried that…"), naming emotions without judging them, summarising. A counterpart who feels understood is more open to proposals.

With an interpreter: brief them beforehand (objective, vocabulary, neutrality, confidentiality); speak in short sentences; look at your counterpart, not the interpreter; ask for a faithful translation, without summaries or additions. Choose an interpreter who will not be put in danger or seen as partisan by the counterpart.

3Tension, refusals and unacceptable demands

Faced with anger or threats, stay calm, lower your voice, listen and suggest a break if necessary. Never respond to provocation and never put your safety at risk for an agreement.

• A refusal is not the end: ask what would allow the matter to be reconsidered, or offer to come back with more information.
• Faced with an unacceptable demand (payment, a share of the aid, the beneficiary list, imposed recruitment), calmly explain why it is impossible, based on the principles and the organisation's policy, and propose an acceptable alternative (for example, informing the authorities of the selection criteria rather than giving names).
• Do not promise anything beyond your mandate: "I will pass your request on to my management and come back to you."

4Concluding, documenting and following up

An oral agreement is restated at the end of the meeting, then documented as soon as you return: date, participants, requests, each party's commitments, open points, next step. The report goes to the mandator and, according to confidentiality rules, to the security focal point and the access working group.

An agreement is tested and followed up: a first small convoy, checking that commitments are kept, informing field teams and the guards at the checkpoint. Thank the counterpart when the agreement is applied: the relationship is built on commitments kept, on both sides.