Disaster risk reduction, an essential requirement for sustainable development

Members of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit during a practical workshop with Haitian masons
The building of earthquake-resistant infrastructures unfolds via the building of local capacities. Here we see a member of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit at a practical workshop with bricklayers in Haiti. © SDC

Natural disasters strike rich and poor countries indiscriminately, but the repercussions are much more dramatic in the Global South. An earthquake, cyclone, flood or drought can undo decades of development efforts. The SDC is committed to disaster risk reduction not only to save lives, but also to ensure the sustainability of the socio-economic development of the countries it assists.

SDC Focus

Disaster risk reduction (DRR) is central to all programmes implemented by the SDC. This preventive approach is essential in vulnerable countries at high risk of natural disasters. The goal of DRR is to save lives and safeguard development gains. 

DRR activities focus both on sudden disasters, particularly flooding and earthquakes, and on disasters that make fewer headlines such as droughts. DRR involves action taken before, during and after a disaster. It requires a long-term commitment to strengthening the institutions, human resources and infrastructure of the partner countries concerned. It is an integrated process that encompasses scientific, technical and socio-political considerations.

The SDC promotes an integrated approach to disaster risk management, centred around the stages that typically occur before, during and after natural disasters:

  1. Prevention: reduce existing risks and prevent the emergence of new risks through preventive and planning measures
  2. Management: reduce the impact of a disaster by organising and training rescue teams
  3. Recovery: reduce the risk of future damage by advocating appropriate reconstruction models

Preventive measures can take a wide variety of forms, including the reforestation of catchment areas affected by landslides, forest mapping and the construction of earthquake-resistant schools (as in Haiti). Organising and training rescue teams saves lives and reduces the impact of disasters.

The SDC is also committed to promoting at the international level the experiences gained in the countries where it is active. In this respect, it played a prominent role in the drafting of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. The SDC also works together with international organisations such as the Global Facility for Disaster Risk and Recovery (GFDRR) and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).

Background

Adopted in March 2015, the Sendai Framework for Action on Disaster Risk Reduction sets out the priorities of the international community for disaster reduction during the 2015–30 period. The Sendai Framework replaced the Hyogo Framework for Action for the 2005–15 period and updated the definition of disaster. The new framework applies to the risk of small-scale and large-scale, frequent and infrequent, sudden and slow-onset disasters, caused by natural or man-made hazards as well as related environmental, technological and biological hazards and risks. It also calls for the strengthening of disaster risk governance, including national platforms.

DRR concerns all sectors of society. It only proves effective when everyone does their part: national and local authorities, the private sector (the insurance sector in particular), civil society, international organisations and the public at large.

Switzerland is internationally renowned for its expertise in DRR. In Switzerland, the SDC is leveraging its partnerships with other units in the Federal Administration to transfer this knowledge to its partner countries. It has joined forces with the Federal Office for the Environment, the Federal Office for Civil Protection and the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), as well as a number of NGOs, the private sector, various universities and the Swiss National Platform for Natural Hazards (PLANAT).

Online tool

DRR is more than a priority theme for the SDC: it is a working methodology. Each project in a country at risk is evaluated to determine how vulnerable it is to potential disasters, and activities are planned to mitigate identified risks. To this end, the SDC has created the CEDRIG Online Tool (Climate, Environment and Disaster Risk Reduction Integration Guidance). Intended for all development and humanitarian aid professionals, this online tool can be used to integrate into project designs the risks associated with natural hazards, climate change and environmental degradation.

CEDRIG Online Tool

SDC internet portal on disaster risk reduction

Specialised information (news, documents, instruments, methods) on knowledge sharing and cooperation with partners and experts

SDC Disaster Risk Reduction Network

Documents

Current projects

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Renforcement de la protection des populations vulnérables dans les régions de l’Ouest et Nord-Ouest du Cameroun

01.03.2023 - 31.12.2025

Le conflit armé dans le Nord-Ouest et le Sud-Ouest (NOSO) a déjà fait plus de 4'000 morts et a déplacé plus de 715'000 personnes. La population civile est victime de violations graves et répétées du droit international humanitaire et des droits humains. Ce projet vise à réduire la violence et améliorer l’accès aux services de prise en charge des victimes.


Enhancing Protection and Justice for Vulnerable Children and Youth in Jordan

01.02.2023 - 31.12.2025

Children are among the most affected by multiple crisis in Jordan. The holistic child protection intervention proposed by Terre des hommes (Tdh) addresses and responds to the complex and intertwined protection needs of the most vulnerable children and youth in Jordan. It links quality of services with institutionalcapacity building and advocacy, thereby fostering a right-based and more sustainable child protection system and addressing hindering social norms in a comprehensive way.


Program Contribution for Fondation Terre des hommes 2023-2024

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2024

The program of the Terre des hommes Foundation (TdhF) aims to sustainably reduce child mortality and morbidity and to secure access to health, sanitation and clean water for mothers and children (0-18 years) in severe poverty. Children in contexts of migration, conflict and disasters, and child victims of violence are better protected. International standards in child-friendly justice are promoted. Humanitarian interventions in fragile contexts, combined with poverty reduction and sustainable development are promoted through innovative work with children and youths.


SPHERE Humanitarian Accountability Project 2023

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2023

Sphere is a diverse global community that brings together frontline practitioners, humanitarian agencies, community organisations, trainers, donors, policy makers, government agencies and affected communities around a common goal – to improve the resilience of, and outcomes for, people affected by disaster and crisis. The Sphere Handbook is one of the most widely known and internationally recognised sets of common principles and universal minimum standards in humanitarian response.


Contribution to UNRWA's Programme Budget 2023-2024

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2024

UNRWA is one of Switzerland’s key multilateral partners in the Middle East, due to its important contributions towards stability and peace in the region and its role in providing services and humanitarian assistance to people in need. Under its Programme Budget, UNRWA ensures universal access to quality primary health care and to basic education to 5.8 million registered Palestine refugees. It also provides targeted relief and social services to vulnerable refugees.


JOR Medair: Social protection program towards improving resilience of refugees and vulnerable Jordanians

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2025

The project initiates a third phase during which Medair Jordan will continue to reach new households in Amman, Irbid and Mafraq with case management and cash for protection, including emergency cash assistance, while focusing on livelihoods solutions to improve the resilience of refugees and vulnerable Jordanians. The project will also build and strengthen the institutional capacities of local actors to provide social protection services through coordination and experience and knowledge exchange.


Allocation of SDC Funding (SubSaharan Africa Division) in 2023 to ICRC Operations in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2023

SDC funding to International Committee of the Red Cross operations allows the ICRC to respond proactively and to provide immediate protection and assistance for people affected by armed conflict and other situations of violence. In line with the Good Humanitarian Donorship principles, Switzerland recognizes the necessity of predictable and flexible funding to respond to changing needs in humanitarian crises.


2023 Annual Allocation to WFP Country Strategic Plans

01.01.2023 - 31.12.2023

Against historic levels of food security due to conflicts, climate change and COVID-19, Switzerland supports annually in 28 SDC priority countries operations of the World Food Programme (WFP) to provide humanitarian and development assistance. It funds indistinctively Country Strategic Plans, incorporating all WFP programmes or projects, based on affected population needs and potential synergies with other local partners, especially national governments and civil society.


WFP, Hurrican Ian Response, Cuba

01.12.2022 - 31.05.2024

Hurricane Ian has caused significant losses in the agricultural and fishing sector limiting the availability and access to food and affecting the livelihoods of the population in the provinces Pinar del Río, Artemisa, Mayabeque and Isla de la Juventud. With its contribution to the World Food Programme through the United Nations Plan of Action, SDC helps providing food assistance and restore food production and livelihoods to meet the needs of 798’000 severely affected people in those provinces.


DRC: Building resilience of Yemeni communities through integrated water resource management and provision of water supply, sanitation and hygiene services

01.12.2022 - 30.11.2025

Through the proposed intervention, the climate and conflict resilience of displacement-affected Yemeni in targeted locations will be reinforced through sustainable and community-led integrated water resource management (IWRM), sustainable water and sanitation systems, provision of multipurpose cash assistance (MPCA) and improved technical and institutional capacity of local partners. 


Strengthening Access to Services for Ukrainian Refugees through Legal Aid

15.11.2022 - 14.11.2023

As a right and a precondition for the enjoyment of all human rights, legal aid promotes peaceful and inclusive societies. The project enhances the access to legal services for Ukrainian refugees through a regional approach building local capacities and enhancing cross-border collaboration. The project opens an avenue for Switzerland to contribute to durable solutions and to channel advocacy messages at national and regional level on the protection of the rights of forcibly displaced populations. 


Appui aux ménages en situation d’ultra-pauvreté à Belle-Anse, Sud-Est Haiti

15.11.2022 - 31.05.2024

Près de 10% de la population haïtienne vit en ultra-pauvreté. Avec sa contribution au programme Chemen lavi Miyò (CLM), la Suisse répond aux besoins humanitaires et de relèvement en appuyant 200 ménages dans le Sud-Est pour les faire sortir de l’ultra-pauvreté. L’approche capitalise sur l’expérience de la Suisse et ses partenaires en Haïti et vise à réduire les inégalités, l’insécurité alimentaire et la vulnérabilité aux catastrophes naturelles.

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