Protecting and promoting the rights of the poorest

Rule of law is based on an independent judiciary, the equality of all citizens before the law, the priority of the constitution and respect for human rights at civic and political level.

SDC focus

On the ground, the SDC encourages governance in countries of the East and South so as to improve the social, political, economic and environmental conditions of their citizens. Empowerment – the emancipation of individuals and of poor and extremely poor groups – and the encouragement of equal participation by women and men rank high among its concerns.

In conflict or post-conflict situations, the SDC supports national human rights institutions in order to protect refugees and internally displaced persons. In Afghanistan, Nepal and Colombia for instance the SDC also cooperates closely with multilateral organizations like the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights or the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Background

Rule of law requires the existence of a consistent, binding legal framework for the work of government authorities. This also entails the application of immutable rules for peaceful coexistence in society, as well as respecting the dignity and rights of the individual, including the poorest and socially most marginalized.

That is why international cooperation makes every effort to foster access to justice and to promote rule of law, supporting reform of the judiciary, police and institutions responsible for penal enforcement. In addition, it cooperates with national human rights committees and NGOs to protect and nurture the rights of the individual and of poor and disadvantaged groups.

Links

Voices of the poor
Study of the World Bank collecting the voices of more than 60,000 poor women and men from 60 countries, in an unprecedented effort to understand poverty from the perspective of the poor themselves.

Current projects

Object 1 – 5 of 5

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Zimbabwe Reconstruction Fund (ZimRef)

01.12.2015 - 31.12.2023

The Zimbabwe Reconstruction Fund is a multi-donor trust fund that supports the Government of Zimbabwe in its reconstruction and development efforts in particular by strengthening the Zimbabwean public finance management and accountability system for improved service delivery, including in the health sector. The fund, with its management mechanism, is currently a key instrument of dialogue and experience sharing between the donors and the Government of Zimbabwe.


WFP Secondment Protection and Gender Advisor

01.06.2015 - 31.12.2016

In Myanmar especially conflict affected and rural populations suffer from moderate to severe malnutrition; but also extreme weather conditions may increase the situation of food insecurity. In recent years there have been reports on protection gaps in the implementation of WFP programmes and women and children are struggling to receive support. The secondment will provide technical support in the domain of protection and gender to the WFP country program.


Institutional Support to Network of Associations of Local Authorities in South East Europe (NALAS)

01.07.2013 - 31.12.2027

With an institutional support to the Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South – East Europe (NALAS), SDC supports the decentralization and democratization processes as well as stability in South East Europe (SEE). NALAS strengthens national associations of local governments and fosters communication and cooperation among them. Through its advocacy activities, NALAS will support local governments in SEE to become more visible and taken into account, both by national governments and European institutions.


Police Capacity Development on Election Security through the UNDP Election Support Program

01.04.2013 - 30.09.2013

On 11th May 2013, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will, for the first time in history, administer a transition from one full term democratic elected government to another. The probability of electoral violence threatens this opportunity. The police are the most important player in smooth conduct of election security. Yet, the majority of the police force has limited knowledge of electoral security protocol. With a contribution to the UNDP Election Support Program the capacity of police in election security will be enhanced.


Object 1 – 5 of 5

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