Focus on Africa

In Egypt, Community Based Organizations are the key actors in responding to migrant’s basic needs. These organizations have the greatest knowledge of community needs, the highest amount of community trust and the most culturally and linguistically competent staff.   

Switzerland contributes to St. Andrews for Refugee Services (StARS). StARS is one of the few NGO's in Cairo that provides to a total of 19'000 refugees and migrants high-quality services and offers a safe and inclusive space for them to come together as a community.

Through education, legal services and psychosocial support, StARS works with refugees and vulnerable migrants in Cairo to increase their ability to meet their basic needs. Additionally they respond to sexual and gender based violence incidents as well as any emergency in the community.   

Children education services are delivered in the form of a school located within StARS premises and servicing 260 children.

Fatma Aly is 26 years old and from Sudan. She and her children benefit from the services of StARS. 

«I have three children. One is ill in hospital. My other two go to school at StARS. One comes to this branch and one to the nursery located elsewhere. I wait here for my daughter to finish classes, then we pick up my other daughter from nursery and go to hospital to the youngest of the girls». 

In the 1990s, decentralisation reforms improved access to infrastructure, encouraged private sector development and reduced inequalities, which are often a source of conflict.   

To stimulate the growth of secondary cities, Switzerland is co-financing a programme with the World Bank to support Mali's urban communities. It is providing expertise in local governance support and economic development.

For better administration and financial governance, the programme's 14 partner cities have been equipped with tools to help with urban planning, budgeting, accounting, auditing and citizen registration. This enables local officials to account for the proper management of human and financial resources.

With Switzerland's support, 30 regional authorities have been able to develop social (education, health, access to drinking water) and economic (transport and market) services which cater to over 6 million people.

More than 700 Swiss-backed projects have made a difference in the areas of education, health, water, local economic development and registry services. For example, a network of more than 300 km of rural roads has been built in the east of the country, connecting cities and providing access to markets. More than 110'000 people have gained access to drinking water thanks to the building of infrastructures such as wells.

Increased awareness among local elected officials about gender equality means that women's associations are now systematically involved in decision-making at local and regional level. 


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SDC Burkina Faso 

SDC Good Governance

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The involvement of men is a decisive factor for the success of this approach. The programme seeks to bring about behavioural change by focusing on prevention and raising awareness among men and local authorities of the issue of sexual and gender-based violence.

People who have suffered violence often fall into poverty and lack the personal and financial resources to take care of themselves. By attending healing workshops, they have an opportunity to pursue new life projects and, for example, secure a bank loan to set up their own business. 

They also learn how to use various tools for managing small projects. With these workshops and the skills they offer, victims can build new lives for themselves.

The psychosocial approach incorporates medical, psychosocial and legal aspects and places particular emphasis on the reintegration of victims into their communities.   

To achieve a sustainable reduction in sexual and gender-based violence in the Great Lakes region, it is essential to continue working at the community level and improve the healthcare available. 

It is also imperative that the countries concerned pursue their efforts to combat impunity.

With half of Niger's population under the age of 15, the country faces the challenge of providing all its citizens with a good quality education. In terms of vocational training, only 1% of needs are covered.  

In support of the Niger authorities, Switzerland launched a programme in 2011 to support vocational training in the country's rural areas. 

The objective is to contribute to the establishment of a local education, training and vocational integration system that meets the needs of young people and the local labour market.

Thanks to Switzerland, various training structures have been initiated or strengthened in the rural regions of Dosso and Maradi, in southern Niger. Switzerland supports a dual learning system, similar to that offered in Switzerland, enabling apprentices to combine theoretical and practical learning in their mother tongue.   

Since 2013, 15'000 young women and men have received training. They acquire formal basic knowledge and the practical skills necessary for a professional activity.

The «vocational training centres» welcome young people who want to learn mechanics, carpentry, electronics or even cooking.

The «integrated agricultural training sites» provide practical training in agriculture, livestock, market gardening and rural machinery. 

Thanks to the agricultural training programme, Nana Aicha Yacouba, an 18-year-old girl from the Maradi region, has been entrusted with the management of the family orchard: 

«With my father we planted an orchard of 100 mango trees on our family farm. I am the one who brings the techniques (grafting and planting) and my father trusts me completely despite the fact that I am the youngest and also a girl. He follows me without hesitation in my decisions. We maintain the orchard together and will hopefully make a good profit when the plants start to bear fruits.»  

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SDC Niger

SDC Basic Education and Vocational Skills Development

The radio show hosts and interviews various experts and influencers such as trending musicians on different topics from health and governance to personal finance. 

The experts offer their professional opinion while celebrities share their views on a selected topic in everyday language. 

Listeners get involved in the discussion by posing questions or sharing their comments by calling in or through social media. Both audiences and guests have engaged in freestyling and singing to share their views.

Niambie has been able to reach 3.8 million female and male listeners since its inception in 2013. Young people who listen to the show have expressed greater knowledge and confidence to engage in democratic processes. 

Niambie listeners say the show has helped them improve their understanding of civic decision-making and the importance of keeping their leaders accountable.

The goal of equal opportunities and rights between young women and young men is central to Niambie. The show's episodes put a strong focus on gender equality. 

Young female listeners report to have learned from topics on gender discrimination and violence, sexual reproductive health and challenges faced by young girls when going to school, among others.   

«I have learned a lot from Niambie. For example, as a young girl, I now know I can engage in politics and share my views. I also connect with my peers from across the country through the Niambie Facebook page to discuss everyday issues» Zainab Juma Kabelengwa, Dar es Salaam.

Climate change is affecting the rural population in Southern Africa hard. Due to frequent droughts, pest infestation and the adverse effects of weather patterns, farmers are finding it very difficult to survive through rain fed agriculture. The dry spells in particular have been devastating.   

In Zimbabwe, the precarious economic situation and high inflation has further exacerbated the situation. The economic crisis has affected small farmers very directly. 

At the end of 2018, seeds and fertilizers were more than twice as expensive as in the previous year. The interplay of climatic and economic shocks has triggered a humanitarian emergency.

Masvingo is the first province in Zimbabwe to implement the World Food Programme (WFP) R4 Rural Resilience Initiative. The project, brought to Southern Africa by Switzerland, supports smallholder farmers in adapting to the effects of climate change. 

R4 combines agricultural and financial components. The R4 initiative includes four risk management strategies, namely risk reduction (asset creation), risk transfer (weather-indexed micro-insurance), risk taking (credit) and risk reserves (savings).

The primary objective is to help poor households improve their food security and deal with climate shocks such as drought.

Farmers gradually reduce their vulnerability to climate risks. Some of the farmers have managed to save some money and are buying and selling groceries in the community. Some are also using the money for emergencies including school fees and medical costs.

From the outset, private insurance companies, microcredit institutions and buyers of agricultural products have been involved in the project to ensure sustainability.   

Kwaneiso Mawere takes a break from digging and says «the most important knowledge that I have gained is how to farm for business».

All of this can be promoted in Southern Africa on a national and regional basis. The R4 initiative in Masvingo is showing great promise in helping vulnerable rural farmers to increase their food and income security in the face of increasing climate risks and shocks in Zimbabwe. 

International climate policies should do everything to ensure that lessons learnt from Zimbabwe are taken into account in other contexts. 

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SDC Southern Africa 

SDC Climate change and the environment