The People-Oriented Planning Tool was developed to improve UNHCR's programming with refugees worldwide. It is based on the fact that, for staff to do the best job possible in providing protection and assistance to refugees in any particular situation, they must know specific things about who the refugees are in that particular setting. The POP programming tool helps UNHCR staff and partners identify the important facts about any group of refugees and organize that information in a way that can be used to make programming decisions and to implement effective programmes.