Nexus Agency
Competence-based technical assistance, staffing and expert-matching enquiries under explicit terms and mandates. Nexus Agency is an established platform published by The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation.
- Publisher
- The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation
- Field
- Governance and institutions, Development finance
Fig.The Nexus cycle on this platform, from question to renewal. Design, not a record of a run.
- STEM methods
- 2
- Canonical methods this field applies
- Topics
- 8
- Subject pages in the field
- Counterparts
- 9
- Platforms in shared fields at GCRI, GRF and GRA
- Report series
- 1
- Nexus Reports series it contributes to
Nexus Agency in brief.
Technical assistance is the provision of knowledge, skills and analysis to an institution that holds a public mandate, without transferring that mandate. Nexus Agency studies how assistance is scoped, staffed, supervised and closed, and how weaknesses at each step become delivery, safeguard and accountability risk for the institutions served.
Its community
Eligible experts; project sponsors; institutions; programme coordinators.
Its methods
Competence matching; conflict checks; engagement scoping; supervision.
Its outputs
Expert pathways; capacity maps; legitimate technical assistance enquiries.
Assignment and team board, in outline.
The working screen behind this platform: its structure, terms and states. Names are placeholders and values illustrative.
Assignment and team board
Assignment pool · Quarter 2
Assignments
Team record
| Team lead | Disaster risk management | None declared | Confirmed |
| Hydrologist | Flood modelling | Declared, managed | Confirmed |
| Data engineer | Pipelines | None declared | Invited |
| Reviewer | Independent | None declared | Confirmed |
Scope
- Requester
- Requesting institution
- Duration
- 4 weeks
- Authority
- stays with the requester
- Fee
- R0 · no fee stated
People and hazards in East Africa.
For nexus agency, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on population density, night lights and true-colour imagery with true colour from NASA GIBS, framed on East Africa; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.
The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.
Layers 3
People and hazards, for this page
Keyboard, with the map focused
Hold Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll to zoom
Latest available
NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth
Loading the latest NASA imagery.
Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.
For nexus agency, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on population density, night lights and true-colour imagery with true colour from NASA GIBS, framed on East Africa; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place; claim ceiling INTEGRATED.
Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Blue Marble · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Natural Earth · GDACS · Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2A · NASA HLS S30Sources and licences
- We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University. 2018. Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11. NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). CC BY 4.0
- VIIRS Black Marble night-time lights, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; distributed by the NASA Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive and Distribution System (LAADS DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- MODIS land products (vegetation indices, gross primary production, land cover), NASA LP DAAC and LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
- © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via NASA GIBS (coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). ODbL
- Blue Marble, NASA Earth Observatory; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
- Context on the globe and flat map: coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names from NASA GIBS reference layers (OpenStreetMap data, ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors); Blue Marble imagery as an optional base; 3D terrain and the elevation read-out from the ASTER GDEM elevation colour index (5 m to 200 m classes, exaggerated for legibility). Boundaries are drawn as published and imply no position on any territory.
- Globe: MapLibre GL JS 6.9.1, BSD-3-Clause, © MapLibre contributors.
- Live: GDACS (EC JRC / UN OCHA) Events are indicative, not official warnings.
- Observed (EO): Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2A (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026), Microsoft Planetary Computer
- Observed (EO): NASA HLS S30 (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026). We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
- Optional layers (35 sources in the layer list: live, forecast, observed and context) print their provider credit on the map and here when switched on; forecasts are model output and derived indices are estimates.
Layers and dates
- Population density, 2020: Population: CIESIN, Columbia University, Gridded Population of the World v4.11 (2018), NASA SEDAC, CC BY 4.0 · static
- Night-time lights, daily: VIIRS Black Marble (VNP46A2), NASA LAADS DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
- True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
- Land cover type (IGBP), yearly: MODIS Terra and Aqua land cover (MCD12Q1), NASA LP DAAC · 2024
- Flood water, 3-day composite: VIIRS Global Flood Product, NASA LANCE · 14 Oct 2026
- Enhanced vegetation index, rolling 8 days: MODIS Terra EVI, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
The questions this field works on.
Technical assistance scope
What support can and cannot authorize.
TopicExpert competence
Skills, evidence and relevant experience.
TopicTeam formation
Interdisciplinary assignments and accountability.
TopicInstitutional support
Scoped support to eligible organizations.
TopicResearch and field assignments
Technical work, safety and supervision.
TopicConflict and independence
Conflicts, procurement neutrality and sanctions.
TopicVolunteer and professional roles
Clear employment and contribution boundaries.
TopicProject closeout
Review, evidence, learning and lawful handoff.
Scoping, matching and supervision for mandated work.
Nexus Agency is designed for four groups: eligible experts who want to contribute their competence; project sponsors who need specialists for a scoped task; institutions that hold a mandate and need support to deliver it; and programme coordinators who form interdisciplinary teams.
- 01
Engagement scoping
A host request is turned into a written scope: question, deliverables, term, limits and supervisor, following technical assistance types and boundaries.
- 02
Competence matching
Candidates are compared on documented competence in the fields of the Nexus network, as set out under fields of expertise and skills and review.
- 03
Conflict checks
Interests are declared and recorded, and a reviewer with a conflict never signs the relevant acceptance.
- 04
Supervision and closeout
Every assignment has a named supervisor, acceptance criteria and a contribution record at closeout; teams follow interdisciplinary teams.
Nexus Agency is designed to publish expert pathways, capacity maps and records of legitimate technical assistance enquiries. It does not employ the experts it matches unless a written contract with GCRI Canada or GCRI US says so.
What the work is read against.
The platform does not set standards. It reads its evidence against the frameworks that competent bodies have adopted, so a finding can be placed where a decision-maker already works.
| Framework or standard | Body | What it sets |
|---|---|---|
| DAC evaluation criteria | OECD Development Assistance Committee | Relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability as the reference for judging development interventions |
| Paris Declaration, Accra Agenda for Action and Busan Partnership | OECD and the Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation | Principles of country ownership, alignment, use of country systems, results and mutual accountability |
| IATI Standard | International Aid Transparency Initiative | Data format for publishing activities, participants, budgets, results and documents of development co-operation |
| Open Contracting Data Standard | Open Contracting Partnership | Structure for disclosing data and documents at every stage of public contracting |
| PEFA Framework | PEFA Secretariat and partners | Indicators and scoring for public financial management performance, including procurement and external audit |
| Environmental and Social Framework | World Bank | Standards on environmental and social risk, labour, community health and safety and stakeholder engagement in financed projects |
| ISO 37001 anti-bribery management systems | International Organization for Standardization | Requirements for preventing, detecting and responding to bribery, including due diligence on associates |
| ISO 21502 guidance on project management | International Organization for Standardization | Concepts and practices for governing, directing and managing projects across their life cycle |
| MAPS Methodology for Assessing Procurement Systems | MAPS Secretariat hosted by the OECD | Assessment of public procurement legal, institutional, operational and integrity pillars |
| Common Approach to Prospective Risk Management | United Nations system | Shared approach to anticipating and managing risk across UN entities and programmes |
Capability gaps are where risk programmes fail.
Most national and institutional risk programmes do not fail for lack of strategy. They stall because the people who can build a flood model, design a data-sharing agreement, run a supervised field survey or review an early-warning system are not available where and when they are needed.
Bounded work
Assistance answers a defined question under a host mandate. It never carries procurement, financing or execution authority.
Evidence, not titles
People are matched on work products, references and scoped tasks, read against the methods the work needs.
Declared conflicts
Financial, institutional and personal interests are declared and managed before selection, not after.
Technical assistance is meant to fill that gap, but it has well-known failure modes. Scope drifts until advisers take decisions that belong to the host. Experts are chosen for title or network rather than demonstrated competence. Conflicts of interest go undeclared, so assistance becomes a route to future contracts. Volunteers and students are given high-consequence work without supervision. And when the project ends, knowledge leaves with the consultants and the host is left with documents it cannot maintain.
Each of these failures compounds the risk the assistance was meant to reduce. A poorly scoped hazard assessment can misdirect investment for years; an unsupervised data task can expose personal information; a captured adviser can tilt procurement. Good assistance is therefore a discipline in its own right, with methods drawn from systems engineering, decision analysis and professional ethics.
Method from STEM, mandates from the Consortium.
Nexus Agency applies systems engineering, for defining requirements, interfaces and acceptance criteria, and decision analysis under uncertainty, for choosing between options when outcomes are uncertain; see the STEM foundation of Nexus Agency. It works alongside platforms at the other pillar institutions, each under its own mandate.
- Governance NexusInstitutionThe Global Risks Forum (GRF)RelationshipInstitutional governance and mandates that assistance must respect.
- Research NexusInstitutionThe Global Risks Forum (GRF)RelationshipResearch agendas and convening that shape where expertise is needed.
- Development Finance NexusInstitutionThe Global Risks Alliance (GRA)RelationshipShared industry understanding of development finance, without advising on or arranging transactions.
- Financial Regulation NexusInstitutionThe Global Risks Alliance (GRA)RelationshipShared understanding of the financial regulatory context of risk programmes.
Field gateways: Governance and institutions and Development finance. The full list is on counterparts across the Consortium.
The areas of governance and institutions this platform takes on.
Nexus Agency studies how technical assistance, expert engagement and institutional support are scoped, staffed, supervised and closed, and how weaknesses at each step become delivery, safeguard and accountability risk for the institutions served. Its pages set out mechanisms, indicators, sources, methods and the decisions each step involves, naming who holds each decision. Every indicator is a name and a unit, not a value, and every source carries its licence.
Technical assistance scope
Mandates, terms of reference, acceptance criteria and the line between advice and decision.
Expert competence
Evidence of skill and relevant experience, verification of credentials and roles, and substitution rules.
Team formation
Interdisciplinary composition, interfaces between workstreams and a single accountable holder for each deliverable.
Institutional support
Capacity at individual, organisational and enabling-environment levels, eligibility and sustainability after exit.
Research and field work
Duty of care, security and health, research ethics, data protection and supervision at a distance.
Conflict and independence
Conflicts of interest, procurement neutrality, sanctions and debarment screening.
Engagement types
Staff, consultant, secondment and volunteer roles, with their rights, duties, cover and ownership of work.
Closeout and learning
Completion evidence, audit, evaluation, lawful handover and records that later work can use.
Terms used on this page.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Technical assistance | Support that supplies expertise, skills and analysis to an institution, leaving its decisions and authority with it. |
| Terms of reference | The document that defines an assignment's objectives, scope, deliverables, counterpart, acceptance criteria and reserved decisions. |
| Capacity development | The process by which people, organisations and societies strengthen their ability to manage their affairs, in OECD DAC usage. |
| DAC evaluation criteria | The OECD criteria of relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability for judging development interventions. |
Built on named science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Every claim on Nexus Agency rests on methods with a canonical page in the STEM Commons, so readers can see what a finding depends on and where its limits lie.
How work moves in this field.
A question becomes evidence, a governed build, an organized community, a controlled test, a reviewed publication and, finally, a decision taken by the competent authority under its own rules.
- QuestionNational, regional or institutional priorityQuestion in Nexus Agency
- EvidenceSTEM foundation of the platformEvidence in Nexus Agency
- BuildNexus FoundryBuild in Nexus Agency
- OrganizeNexus EcosystemOrganize in Nexus Agency
- TestNexus Universe (independent site)Test in Nexus Agency
- PublishNexus ReportsPublish in Nexus Agency
- DecideCompetent authorities and institutions, through Nexus RailsDecide in Nexus Agency
- RenewCorrections and the next annual agendaRenew in Nexus Agency
The same field, seen three ways.
GCRI studies a field as science, GRF governs it and GRA builds shared financial understanding of it. Nexus Agency links to its counterparts so that work on one side is visible on the others.
- Research NexusInstitutionGRFShared fieldGovernance and institutions
- Policy NexusInstitutionGRFShared fieldGovernance and institutions
- Capital NexusInstitutionGRFShared fieldDevelopment finance
- Governance NexusInstitutionGRFShared fieldGovernance and institutions
- Development Finance NexusInstitutionGRAShared fieldDevelopment finance
- Financial Regulation NexusInstitutionGRAShared fieldGovernance and institutions
- Disaster Risk FinanceInstitutionGRAShared fieldDevelopment finance
- Financial Crime and Fraud RiskInstitutionGRAShared fieldGovernance and institutions
Pages in Nexus Agency.
Competence and expertise
PageTechnical assistance
PageAssignments and missions
PageSkills and review
PageInterdisciplinary teams
PageParticipate as expert or organization
PageExpert and project integrity
PagePurpose and publisher
PageSupporting methods
PageContributors and community
PagePublic outputs
PageContact and support
PageSTEM foundation of Nexus Agency
PageHow work moves in this field
PageBuild in Nexus Foundry
PageTest in Nexus Universe
PagePublish in Nexus Reports
PageThe same field across the Consortium
PageTopics
Where this page leads across the Consortium.
Questions and answers.
Who publishes Nexus Agency?
Is Nexus Agency active?
How can I contribute?
Where are findings published?
Which values on this platform are real?
How do I report an error?
Is Nexus Agency a recruitment agency or employer?
Can technical assistance include procurement or financing decisions?
Around Nexus Agency.
Bring your expertise to this field.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.