The Regional Thematic Hub of the Swiss Agency for Development of Cooperation (SDC) is based at the Embassy of Switzerland in Thailand. The mandate of the Hub combines multiple roles with the goal to support Swiss representations in the region thematically and to exchange with regional partner organizations and country representatives on the latest regional and national trends, needs of people, and support strategies.
The Hub-team supports Swiss cooperation offices in the region thematically on the topics Climate Change, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Environment, Food and Water. The support can be requested for thematic guidance on designing and implementing strategies and projects, as well as for conducting thematic trainings. For these tasks, the geographic scope of action focuses on the SDC-priority cooperation countries Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and a direct-action project in Indonesia.
Several projects are also directly managed by the Regional Thematic Hub. These are typically projects with innovative approaches for mitigation of climate change and environmental degradation, better understanding of disaster risk, and for increasing disaster risk management capacities in the region.
Part of the work of team of the Regional Thematic Hub focuses on Swiss Humanitarian Aid (SHA). The team of the Hub monitors disaster risks continuously and provides assistance in risk assessment to Swiss representation across Southeast Asia. In case of a major disaster with a request for international assistance, the Regional Thematic Hub serves as an intermediary support between the SDC headquarter and the Swiss country representations. The team of the Hub represents Switzerland also in coordination meetings for several regional aid mechanisms.
Further information can be found with the documents below.