TRANSFORM - Fonds d’Innovation pour le développement (FID), 2026-2028

Global progress in poverty reduction faces mounting challenges from fragility, conflict, climate risks, and growing humanitarian needs. Addressing these complex issues requires systemic innovation, solutions that are adaptive, inclusive, and resource-efficient.

Building on its long-standing capacity to pilot and adapt innovative approaches in complex contexts, SDC supports solutions that are practical, scalable, and grounded in local realities. Through its TRANSFORM program (2020-2030), SDC fosters research that generates knowledge and tested, evidence-based innovative solutions to reduce poverty and inequality and advance sustainable development in LMICs. Several research projects, as well as many SDC-supported pilot projects worldwide, demonstrate a solid proof of concept and are ready to scale. However, SDC currently lacks a dedicated internal mechanism to support this transition. To bridge this gap externally and provide funding for the most promising initiatives to expand their impact, SDC partners with the Fund for Innovation in Development (FID). This established, staged and evidence-based funding model supports proven solutions move from successful pilots to realworld adoption and policy integration. In parallel, SDC is reviewing its internal mechanisms to support innovation.

Through its collaboration with FID, SDC engages in a coordinated, multidonor effort that enhances the potential to reach meaningful impact at scale, going beyond what Switzerland could achieve on its own. This collaboration aligns Switzerland’s evidence-based development approach with FID’s rigorous, innovation-driven financing to accelerate the scaling of high-impact solutions. It positions Switzerland, together with France, as a first mover in advancing coordinated evidence-based innovation for development.

1) Evidence-based innovations achieve sustainable impact at scale

Innovative solutions addressing development challenges are identified and supported, rigorously evaluating their effectiveness, and enabling large-scale adoption of proven solutions and policy transformation to reduce poverty and inequality in LMICs.

2) Research & innovation ecosystems in partner countries are strengthened

Local research and innovation ecosystems are reinforced, as institutions and governments gain enhanced capacities to design, test, adapt, and scale evidence-based solutions.

Risultati principali attesi:  

A diverse portfolio of high potential innovations addressing priority LMIC development challenges is selected and supported across stages (early-stage, testing, scaling). Through SDC’s contribution, 10-12 projects will receive additional FID funding (currently 25-30 projects funded annually by FID).

Rigorous testing, evaluation, and cost‑effectiveness analyses are supported and enabled for FID‑funded innovations, in line with FID criteria.

Scaling‑readiness assessments, scale‑up plans, and pathways‑to‑impact strategies are developed and applied with targeted support provided to FID‑funded innovation teams.

Training sessions, workshops, mentoring, peer-learning exchanges, and technical support modules are designed and delivered to innovation ecosystem actors (i.e. researchers, innovators, institutions, governments) in LMICs.

Technical support to improve innovation design, evaluation, adaptation, and scaling practices is provided through FID.

A first coordinated European donor approach is initiated.

Risultati fasi precedenti:   Between 2021 and 2025 (before partnering with SDC), FID received more than 3’600 applications and funded over 100 innovations, confirming both strong demand and the ability to identify high-impact initiatives. It committed €64 million across 35 countries to pilots, impact evaluations, and scaling efforts, with 61% of projects in LDCs and 90% in Africa. Nearly 260 global experts contributed to rigorous project selection. Examples of successful FID interventions include assessing innovative digital technology solutions to boost tax revenues, successfully scaling technical innovations for reducing agricultural losses or piloting autologous transfusion solutions to address blood shortages.

Applying for FID funding is open to TRANSFORM programs and projects (SOR4D, ETH4D, Tech4Dev, TRANSFORM flagship projects), as well as to innovative projects across all international cooperation instruments based on transparent competition.

When relevant, SDC will link FID projects to the respective country/regional/thematic programmes.