The impact of climate change has no geographical boundaries. It affects everyone, all over the world, and is particularly hard on those whose livelihoods depend directly on the natural environment. Climate change is one cause of poverty, hunger and natural disasters.
Climate change around the world is creating new challenges for those involved in international development, since poor countries and population groups are much harder hit than prosperous ones. Climate change hampers development and jeopardises the progress that has already been achieved. For this reason, climate change mitigation and management are increasingly important elements of development cooperation. The SDC's Global Programme Climate Change, in particular, takes account of this trend.
Switzerland incorporates climate change in its development policy and provides expertise, technical solutions and financial resources for climate protection.
Mountains are home to one-fifth of the world's population and a source of water for half of humanity. As a mountainous country, Switzerland supports sustainable development of mountain regions.
Haiti has been repeatedly devastated by earthquakes and hurricanes in recent years. SDC engineers are now working with those affected to build more stable houses from local materials. Five hundred new homes are to be built by 2021.
Country/region
Topic
Period
Budget
Haiti
Climate change and environment
Vocational training
Governance
Flash floods and mudslides are examples of hazards that threatens inhabitants of Muminabad district in Tajikistan. Switzerland is supporting a project to reduce the risk of natural disasters in four watersheds of the district. The project of Caritas Switzerland relies on a sustainable agriculture and livestock production with a strong involvement of local communities and authorities.
Dans les régions du delta intérieur du Niger, au centre et au Nord du Mali, les populations rurales sont confrontées à des crises structurelles multiformes dont l’insécurité alimentaire. La DDC appuie les autorités locales avec des projets économiques dans les filières agricoles porteuses pour assurer la sécurité alimentaire et réduire la pauvreté d’au moins 150'000 personnes. En plus, elle accompagne les municipalités de cette zone dans la maitrise d’ouvrage du développement territorial et la gestion pacifique des ressources naturelles.
Country/region
Topic
Period
Budget
Mali
Agriculture & food security
Governance
Climate change and environment
Drought, fodder scarcity and conflicts over natural resources make life difficult for pastoralists in southern Ethiopia. The SDC has taken various measures to improve their food security and their resilience to crisis situations, ranging from the rehabilitation of pastureland and water points to the introduction of land use plans and the diversification of income sources for women.
Country/region
Topic
Period
Budget
Ethiopia
Agriculture & food security
Climate change and environment
Water
In response to the explicit demand of the five Central Asian States, and building on over 20 years of cooperation in the field of water, SDC facilitates transboundary water resources cooperation consistent with the Blue Peace approach implemented in the Middle-East and at the global level through the establishment of a High Level Dialogue Platform, the promotion of sustainable water practices as well as capacity building of a new generation of water professionals and champions.
The forests of the Andes are valuable in a variety of ways: they store and purify water, provide protection against natural hazards, and absorb environmentally harmful greenhouse gases. With the ANFOR project, the SDC is contributing to the long-term protection of Andean forests.
Malgré l’excédent céréalier enregistré durant ces deux dernières décennies, l’insécurité alimentaire touche près du ¼ de la population du Mali. La DDC veut renforcer les capacités institutionnelles et organisationnelles du dispositif national de sécurité alimentaire en vue d’améliorer la prévention et la gestion des crises conjoncturelles et accroître la résilience des populations vulnérables à l’insécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle.
Air pollution is an important impediment to sustainable development in cities, and short-lived climate pollutants such as black carbon represent a major trigger for climate change. Supporting increasing voluntary efforts, CALAC+ will assist clean air strategies in five Latin American cities by fostering normative and technological changes and share lessons at the global level. Capacity building will use the comparative advantage of Swiss experience and the private sector’s interest to increase its stance in urban clean air issues.
The regional program fosters shared governance of natural resources to build resilience in the coastal communities of the Gulf of Fonseca. It contributes to the protection and sustainable use of the shared mangrove ecosystem of Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador. Switzerland sees this gulf region as a priority for its high levels of poverty and extreme vulnerability to climate change.
To adapt to climate change farmers rely increasingly on irrigation, ultimately depleting groundwater resources and raising energy demand. The project aims to address these challenges by promoting solar irrigation, water efficient agriculture and groundwater governance. The project will harness Swiss expertise on hydrogeology and technical innovations to contribute to climate resilient agriculture and facilitate knowledge sharing in South Asia and at the global level.
India is one of the most severely affected countries by air pollution in the world. This project will contribute to India’s new National Clean Air Programme, with the aim to improve air quality with co-benefits on public health, environment and climate change. Capacity building and technical assistance through Swiss expertise will support data measurement and analysis, city level clean air action plans and awareness raising campaigns to take precautionary measures and mitigate air pollution.
The project enables two thousand grassroots women and their families to implement effective climate adaptation practices and strengthen their voice and leadership to influence related public plans and policies. The exchange of good local practices will be fostered among women in the region, thus increasing their resilience to climate change and variability.