Agroecology, our core competence

The work of SWISSAID is based on the 13 principles of agroecology defined by the HLPE (High Level Panel of Experts) of the intergovernmental World Food Committee. These in turn are based on the 10 principles of agroecology of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation) of the UN. SWISSAID has added an important fourteenth principle to the existing 13 principles: gender equality – a decisive lever for improving living conditions in agroecology.

Click on the red magnifying glasses in the image to find out more about the individual principles.

In our cooperation with our nine partner countries, we focus on the following five aspects:

1. Women farmers

Agroecology offers women a diverse role in the management of the household. At the same time, it challenges patriarchal structures within the family and provides women with better economic opportunities. With low start-up and production costs, efficient production techniques and stable yields over time, the approach is less risky, more affordable and more accessible to women than other farming methods.

In addition, research into agroecological methods requires spaces and opportunities for exchange. Women exchange ideas with each other in specialist groups and take on leadership positions in cooperatives and other formal forms of collaboration. This strengthens self-confidence and promotes equality.

2. Biodiversity and seeds

Agroecology preserves and strengthens biodiversity. It enables the development of new types of local seeds that are adapted to the environment and therefore more resilient. SWISSAID supports and promotes these traditional farmer seed systems. Women farmers in particular play an important role in the conservation and promotion of seeds.

3. Different sources of income

The variety of crops enables families to sell different products throughout the year. This provides them with a stable source of income. By using their own seeds, locally available materials for the production of organic fertilisers and pesticides, production costs can be significantly reduced compared to a conventional agricultural system. Access to local markets with local products also increases income.

4. Adaptation to climate change

Agroecological practices strengthen the resilience of the ecosystem and rural communities to the climate crisis. Thanks to the cultivation of diverse crops that complement each other well, agroecological methods enable good, regular harvests. This enables farming families to maintain production and productivity in the medium and long term in the face of an increasingly unpredictable climate. In addition, agroecological cultivation produces fewer greenhouse gases because synthetic pesticides are no longer needed. Agroecology is an integrated system with plants and small animals that does not exceed the carrying capacity of the ecosystem. On the contrary: targeted plants and practices bind carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

5. Networks and knowledge transfer

Agroecology is an area that requires a great deal of knowledge. Traditional knowledge, especially that of rural women, is particularly valued and linked to scientific findings.

SWISSAID supports the exchange of knowledge between farmers, scientists, advisors, partners, external actors and employees in order to learn from each other and further develop agroecology. To this end, the establishment of mechanisms for knowledge exchange at different levels is crucial.

In our partner countries, SWISSAID supports alliances, competence centres or national platforms that are intended to contribute to the transformation of today’s food systems towards more sustainable agriculture and food systems.

In Switzerland, SWISSAID is a co-founder of the Sufosec Alliance to promote synergies between different organisations. The alliance has set up a learning group for agroecology. The aim is to exchange knowledge about the various practices worldwide and share the latest results.

Finally, SWISSAID is a founding member of “Agroecology Works!” the network brings together stakeholders working in the field of agroecology in Switzerland in order to sensitise the general public and promote a sustainable approach.

While hunger has increased dramatically again in recent years, the Sufosec Alliance has succeeded in noticeably improving food security in its programme areas. The introduction of agroecological farming methods for a sustainable, fair and healthy food system is very promising and has been proven to contribute to better food security.

The initial interim results are encouragingly positive: Despite global crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and climate change, the alliance can demonstrate its first measurable successes: A total of 291,000 households have used at least one sustainable farming method and over 500,000 people have been empowered and strengthened to improve their situation independently.

The road is long, but the motivation of the Alliance partners remains unbroken: By 2024, the alliance aims to reduce hunger in the project areas by 20 per cent. Thanks to sustainably produced and sufficiently available healthy food.

Find out more about the impact on the website of Sufosec.

In addition to successes in practice, scientific studies underpin the effectiveness of agroecology.

• In September 2021, SWISSAID published a report on agroecology. It clearly showed why agroecology is the best method for female farmers in the South. We believe that this solution can improve the living conditions of the 800 million people in the world who still suffer from hunger, and we are doing everything we can to achieve this – both in Switzerland and in the countries of the South.
• In the same year, a study analysed 11,771 scientific articles in 1998 and 2019 and concluded that 78 percent of the articles found a positive relationship between agroecological farming methods and an improvement in food security and nutrition: Can agroecology improve food security and nutrition? A review. In 2023, we highlighted the contribution of agroecology to biodiversity and a balanced diet in the report “Agroecology on the Plate”.
• In 2024, a five-year research project in which SWISSAID was involved examined common agroecological methods and their impact on the cultivation of cassava and maize. With promising results.
• Based on a large-scale analysis of scientific articles, the Desira-Lift report published in 2024 proves that agroecological cultivation systems maintain or increase crop yields compared to standardised monocultures.
• The Sufosec Alliance, of which SWISSAID is a member, published its second nutrition report ‘Sustainable nutrition starts locally’ in October 2024. Based on data from around 125,000 households, it provides scientific evidence of the importance of agroecology in the fight against hunger.

Further scientific papers and studies can be found in the download area.

SWISSAID has many years of expertise in the field of agroecology. The local coordination offices in our nine partner countries work together with experts. They support the partners on the ground and promote the exchange of knowledge on agroecology.

The specialists in the partner countries, the Communautés de Pratique (CoPs), exchange information at international, national and regional level and promote the joint creation of new knowledge.

Depending on the country, SWISSAID employees work closely with universities or research centres in order to link practical knowledge with scientific analyses. In Tanzania, for example, the SWISSAID office conducts research with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and Sokoine University Tanzania. The results of this scientific work should also be fed back into politics: In Tanzania, we have worked with our partners in favour of the current strategy for organic agriculture (National Ecological Organic Agriculture Strategy NEOAS).