Steering Group

The Steering Committee is responsible for and supervises the day-to-day operation of the network, the execution of which is delegated to the Be-cause health Coordinator. It makes strategic proposals to the General Assembly and discusses proposals for external communication and views on policy. When necessary, the Steering Committee will consult the members.

The Steering Committee consists of 11 Be-cause health members, elected by the General Assembly, and the Be-cause health Coordinator. The elected members exercise their office personally. They contribute the expertise gained through their own organisations.

The optimal composition of the Steering Committee aims to reflect the diversity of the Be-cause health members: 2 representatives of academic institutions, 2 representatives of NGOs, 2 representatives of public institutions, 2 representatives of member organisations from a LMIC, 2 representatives of another kind of member organisations and 1 individual member. People from the LMIC-diaspora community in Belgium are pro-actively encouraged to apply. The gender balance of the Steering Committee is 50:50 (if the number of members is even), or 60:40 in either direction (if the number of members is uneven).

The term of office is 4 years and is renewable once. The Steering Committee and its Chair are elected by the General Assembly. The positions of Treasurer, and members of the Ethical Commission (including the Ombudsperson) are elected within the Steering Committee. To ensure continuity, each member (including the Chair) has a substitute to take over their tasks in their absence.

Complaint procedure

Complaints about ethical misconduct of the Be-cause health network and/or its members can at any time be filed with the Be-cause health Ombudsperson which refers the complaint to the Ethical Commission.

The Be-cause health Ethical Commission will assess, within 30 days after the complaint, if the complaint is justified and makes sure that it has the authority to intervene. If the complaint is justified the Ombudsperson informs the complainant. The Ethical Commission examines the complaint and seeks solutions through dialogue. The Ombudsperson will regularly update the complainant on how matters are progressing. Every complaint is treated with confidentiality.

After examining a complaint about ethical misconduct of a member, the Ethical Commission informs the Steering Committee if membership is still eligible. If not, the Steering Committee can decide to suspend the member until the General Assembly decides on the potential exclusion of the member.

After examining a complaint about ethical misconduct of the Be-cause health network, the Ethical Commission issues recommendations to the Steering Committee based on its findings that emerged from the complaint handling process to improve the functioning of the Be-cause health network.