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Researchers at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) work closely with partners at Jigjiga University in the Somali Region. Their common goal is to improve health service delivery for pastoral and agropastoral communities in Ethiopia.

Digital technologies have been revolutionising farming for some time. Smartphones make it possible to identify plant diseases and their treatment, measure soil fertility and facilitate the marketing of farm produce. Yet Agriculture 4.0 also poses challenges.

Deadly conflicts have been raging in Africa’s Great Lakes region for decades.  Women especially are paying a heavy price: unspeakable atrocities have been committed against them. But they are getting back on their feet, supporting each other and working for peace.

Psychologist Simon Gasibirege established community-based workshops for mental health in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda to alleviate the trauma and rebuild the country's social fabric. In this interview he talks about how the approach has helped to rekindle hope in a population traumatised by decades of conflict. He also explains why women are more resilient.

Women traders in Burundi, the DR Congo and Rwanda have joined hands to expand cross-border activities. These enhance their financial independence while also increasing trade between the countries and contributing to mutual understanding and peace.

In the Goascorán River basin in Honduras, an SDC programme has improved the livelihoods of smallholder farm families and reduced their vulnerability to climate change. The watershed management model has been so successful that it is now being adopted across the country by the Honduran government.

The diversity of species and ecosystems on our planet is declining rapidly. A new global framework containing clear-cut goals and indicators aims to revitalise efforts to protect and restore biodiversity.

The African continent is rich in flora and fauna, and unique ecosystems. It plays a key role in the conservation of global biodiversity. However, Mariam Mayet, Executive Director of the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), warns that indigenous peoples and smallholder farmers are being driven off their land in order to promote nature conservation.

An initiative aims to mainstream ecological agriculture into national production systems in Africa by 2025. This will strengthen farmers and protect biodiversity.

Switzerland is strongly committed to implementing the Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems endorsed by the UN Committee on World Food Security in 2014.

Many women in Georgia work in dairy farming. A UN programme is supporting them to become more professional and overcome gender stereotypes.

Millions of people in Zimbabwe are living hand to mouth because of political, economic and climate-related crises. The SDC helps them set up micro enterprises, making them more resilient to recurring shocks.

Small and medium agri-enterprises in Africa are rarely able to get loans from banks. With a mix of financial incentives, the Aceli Africa programme supports private investment in the agrifood sector and promotes gender inclusion and the creation of jobs. This should serve as a model for the entire continent.

Research can play a vital role in reducing poverty and environmental degradation, as has been clearly illustrated in the case of food security. Researchers have helped to achieve remarkable breakthroughs – but they face huge challenges.

Over a period of ten years, Switzerland has funded more than 50 transnational projects via the r4d programme. These have come up with solutions for various global issues, ranging from insects as animal fodder to an antibiotic algorithm.

The promotion of research as part of Swiss development cooperation has a long tradition. The SDC employs numerous instruments to help develop knowledge for solving global issues in many local contexts.

Forty years ago, one of the most brutal chapters in world history came to a close in Cambodia. A quarter of the country's population had been killed by the murderous Khmer Rouge regime, the economy was destroyed, society was traumatised. Yet, ever since the 1991 peace accords, the Cambodian economy has been growing at a faster pace than most other Asian countries and poverty has been reduced. On the political front, however, the country is increasingly turning into an autocracy.

In the South Caucasus, animal husbandry is an important source of income for the rural population, but many farmers produce just enough to feed their families. In a bid to reduce poverty, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is helping them to develop their businesses and sell their produce.

Wild tea that grows in Lao's rugged landscape is harvested by smallholder farmers. The SDC is assisting them to strengthen their organisational capacities and agroecological knowledge, thereby enabling them to process and add value to the product. This will raise incomes and improve living conditions.

Zero hunger by 2030 – the international community set this goal for itself in 2015. But with current methods of agricultural production that goal will remain elusive. A fundamental shift towards agroecology is necessary.

The most vulnerable population groups typically benefit less than average from development programmes, and the situation is no different in Benin in West Africa. One reason is that such groups are often insufficiently represented in statistics. Benin is consequently focusing its statistics on the most vulnerable 20%.

The livelihoods of many fisherfolk and farmers in the Gulf of Mottama in southern Myanmar are at risk. Fish stocks have drastically declined, there is widespread erosion and arable land is becoming salinised due to flooding. Switzerland is providing support through training programmes, conservation of natural resources and livelihood diversification.

Laos is one of the poorest countries in South-East Asia. But its government has great ambitions. It wants to make Laos 'the battery of Asia'. In addition, a Chinese high-speed rail link is meant to fast-track this poor country into the future. Yet all of this comes at a high price for the population.

Seit mehreren Jahren verursacht der Bürgerkrieg im Südsudan eine schwere humanitäre Krise. Mehr als die Hälfte der Bevölkerung hungert. Nun bekämpfen viele Familien in der Hauptstadt Juba Fehlernährung und Geldknappheit mit Familiengärten.

Personalverantwortlicher des Schweizer Kooperationsbüros in Benin.

Die Bevölkerung von Benin wächst jährlich um 2,7 Prozent, ist jung und bringt den stagnierenden Arbeitsmarkt aus dem Gleichgewicht. Drei Jungunternehmer setzen trotz aller Widrigkeiten auf Mut, Ideen und viel Eigeninitiative.

Nachdem in den 2000er-Jahren wilde Minen in der Mongolei aufkamen, haben die mongolischen Behörden mit Unterstützung der Schweiz die Bedingungen der Minenarbeiter verbessert – die Einkommen konnten erhöht und der Sektor legalisiert werden.

Bio-Fleisch vom Bauernhof im Dorf oder Lama-Trekking für die ganze Familie im Emmental. So kämpfen hiesige Bäuerinnen und Bauern gegen tiefe Einkommen und Abwanderung in die Zentren. Diese Strategie der Nischenproduktion und Diversifizierung ist mittlerweile auch in DEZA-Projekte in Osteuropa und im Südkaukasus eingeflossen.

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Trotz fruchtbarer Böden, reichlich Regen und viel Sonne ging es den georgischen Bauernfamilien lange schlecht. Nun setzt das Land im Südkaukasus, in dem über die Hälfte der Bevölkerung in der Landwirtschaft arbeitet, wieder auf eine alte Tradition: den Weinanbau.

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Mehr Schweinefleisch und Einkommen, weniger fossile Energie und Belastung der Böden – kein Ding der Unmöglichkeit, sondern das Ziel eines DEZA-Projekts in Kuba. Bauernfamilien erzeugen dort Biogas und Biodiesel für den Eigenbedarf.

Während zwei Jahrzehnten hat die DEZA zusammen mit kirgisischen Bauern Käse produziert. Mit dem Verkauf der Schweizer Milchverarbeitungsanlage an einen privaten Investor ist nun ein aussergewöhnliches Projekt zu Ende gegangen.

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IN DIESEM DOSSIER