For the SDC, local economic development is not just an economic matter but a cooperative approach which provides an excellent tool for bringing together different interest groups to agree on local cooperation that can help create jobs and income, in addition to improving governance.

SDC focus

Moreover, local economic development can also strengthen governance at national level. In countries like Kosovo or Burkina Faso, the SDC conducts local economic development activities which have been implemented simultaneously in several towns. This has enabled municipalities (or rather territories, because each town has close links with its peri-urban and rural hinterland) to exchange information and experience that are specific to them. This has led to better cooperation among local authorities and thus added weight to the local dimension in dialogue with central government.

Background

Local economic development brings together various stakeholders from civil society, as well as the public and private sectors. Its goal is to promote cooperation so as to develop a given area. Cooperation is a key factor in governance. Local economic development (LED) triggers a political process in which the protagonists have to negotiate the priorities bearing in mind the limited human and financial resources at their disposal.

Forces that drive the economy

Economic considerations drive the private sector. Cooperation on creating public goods, such as improved framework conditions for investment, calls for a private-public collaboration that is built into concrete projects ("We'll build the road, and you'll build the factory. You tell us what's not right about the investment climate, and we'll put it right."). In this way, combined LED efforts create new business prospects. The public sector needs the private sector for local economic development.

In virtually every country, it is the private sector that creates most jobs and generates income, and jobs and income are a priority for the public sector's customers and voters. Poverty reduction and – perhaps more important for a civil servant – re-election of the mayor and his staff depend on the generation of income.

Governance as a process

Civil society, like local associations, should also be part of planning and implementing development projects in which the economic dimension is obviously not the only issue at stake. The State and local government do not cover all the ground. So the three stakeholder groups – the public and private sectors and civil society – negotiate and cooperate on the basis of concrete information derived from evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the local economy, as well as the opportunities and risks involved. This dynamic exchange between partners improves governance at local level.

Current projects

Object 13 – 24 of 971

Intégration de la santé mentale dans les soins de santé primaire au Burundi

01.01.2024 - 31.12.2031

L’intégration de la santé mentale dans les services de santé primaire du Burundi vise à renforcer le système de prise en charge des personnes atteintes de maladies mentales post traumatiques. La Suisse est un partenaire important du Burundi qui a un intérêt à contribuer à mettre fin au cycle de violences qui trouvent leur origine en partie dans des traumatismes vécus mais non traités. Le programme appuie les institutions nationales concernées, le système de formation spécialisée et vise l’amélioration du cadre législatif en santé mentale.


Participation des femmes dans le processus de paix, de sécurité et de relèvement au Mali

31.12.2023 - 31.03.2031

La Suisse s’engage au Mali pour une participation plus significative des femmes dans le processus de paix. Par l’intermédiaire de ONU-Femmes, les soutiens directs à des initiatives de la société civile malienne seront complétés par la réalisation du Plan d’Action National pour la mise en œuvre de la Résolution 1325 de l’ONU, concernant la participation de femmes dans les processus de paix et les garanties de sécurité. Le programme contribue ainsi à la stabilisation de la sous-région


Programme d’appui à la commercialisation du bétail en Afrique de l’Ouest

01.07.2023 - 31.12.2028

Dans la région ouest africaine, le secteur de l’élevage est une grande opportunité d’intégration économique et de création de richesses pour les populations et les pays. En complément au soutien au secteur dans les pays prioritaires, ce programme vise le renforcement de la chaine de valeur régionale des produits animaux au profit des éleveurs. L’accent est mis sur le renforcement du secteur privé et l’amélioration des politiques et pratiques régionales d’échanges en  produits animaux.


Mine Action for Human Development in Cambodia 2017- 2025

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2025

Over the past 20 years Cambodia has made significant progress in clearing landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW). Nevertheless 1,640 km2 of land remain contaminated as suspected minefields at this moment. SDC plans supporting national and regional mine action initiatives to ensure that development of poor rural communities is no longer impeded by disablement and restricted access to land, forests and water resources due to landmines and ERW.


Global Measurement of Diet Quality

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2025

Diets are the number one risk factor in the global burden of disease and multiple forms of malnutrition co-exist with overweight and obesity being the fastest growing form, particularly among poor populations in developing countries. Routinely collected information on Diet Quality is necessary to better understand dietary trends, help to create awareness, and inform policies to improve diets and health outcomes. Therefore, SDC supports an international initiative to develop diet quality measurements.


Financement des fonds agricoles nationaux du Bénin (FinAgri)

01.12.2022 - 30.11.2030

Au Bénin, il n’existe pas de dispositif national pour le financement du secteur agricole (agriculteurs, éleveurs, artisans et entreprises agricoles). Par la présente initiative, la DDC veut soutenir l’Etat béninois et le secteur privé dans la mise en place des dispositifs communs et pérennes de financement du secteur. Le but est de renforcer la productivité, la compétitivité des productions agricoles et la résilience des systèmes de productions aux effets des variations climatiques.


Ashshash: for men and women who have escaped trafficking

18.11.2022 - 28.02.2029

20,000 people (of whom 70% women) who have experienced trafficking will be economically and socially rehabilitated. Public and private institutions will provide employment or in-kind support for entrepreneurship to men and women who have escaped trafficking. The Government will better address the prevention of trafficking, protection of victims, prosecution of traffickers in the revision and enacting of policies, and create partnerships, for bringing about systemic changes.


Soutien au Dispositif National de Sécurité Alimentaire -PRESA-

01.07.2022 - 31.12.2025

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.



Promoting physical activity and healthy diet through regulatory measures (ProPDR)

01.01.2022 - 31.12.2023

Non-communicable diseases constitute one of the major global health challenges today. Unhealthy diet and physical inactivity are the main causes of obesity and related morbidities. The adaptation of national regulatory and legislative frameworks is critical for the prevention and control of Non-communicable diseases. This initiative strives to strengthen capacity and expertise of low- and middle income countries to implement legal and regulatory measures.


Strengthening democratic local governance

01.01.2022 - 30.06.2026

The project aims at supporting the democratic transition and the peace efforts in Myanmar. Using a decentralized budget support approach to all townships of one state in the Southeast of the country, it will strengthen township’s participatory planning and budgeting capacity. The project will also deepen the community’s capacity to demand public services. Additionally it will support national level policy discussions based on this experience.


Sustainable Natural Resources Management (NRM) for Enhanced Pastoralist Food Security in the Borana Zone, Ethiopia.

01.01.2022 - 31.12.2027

Natural resources, particularly water and pasture, are among the key determinants of pastoralist livelihoods’ sustainability. The proposed Project contributes to the outcomes of the SDC’s Food Security Domain as stipulated in the Swiss Cooperation Strategy Horn of Africa. It aims at improving pastoralist food security and adaptive capacities in the lowlands of Borana Zone, Southern Ethiopia, through enhancing the sustainable management of natural resources.

Object 13 – 24 of 971