SDC Support Mandate in Mobility
Advising SDC and it’s partners in the thematic field of mobility and transport
Country:
Switzerland
Project Period:
2007 – 2009
Services Provided:
Name of Client(s):
Description of the Project:
SDC has been involved in rural transport since 1964 and has established recognised excellence in labour-based, environmentally friendly and participatory approaches, in strategic transport planning and in sustainable operation and management of transport systems. To provide appropriate support to its operational activities in the field, SDC fostered thematic partnerships with the IFRTD (International Forum for Rural Transport and Development) and Skat.
Since 1999, Skat has successfully advised SDC in transport issues through successive backstopping mandates. In 2004, SDC outsourced its thematic support to Skat (support mandate) whilst maintaining a light focal point only in-house. The support mandate takes advantage of SDC’s expertise and contributes to the current sector concerns by fostering and making available innovations, learning and best practices, by supporting knowledge platforms and networks as well as counselling. The mandate delivered tailored products and services on demand and in respect to felt needs in the fields of:
- Innovation & Learning (documentation center, TransWeb, capitalization of experiences, follow-up of SDC project developments, training, R&D in “Mobility and Health”, etc.)
- Development of Policies & Tools (SDC policy and strategy fundamentals, tools and guidelines to mainstream new concepts, approaches and principles, etc.)
- Networking & Knowledge sharing (facilitation of TransNet, international networking, collaboration with IFRTD, mobility newsletter, etc.)
- Advisory services & Policy dialogue (advisory / policy support, Q&A service, activities on behalf of SDC, services on demand, etc.)
In the absence of in-house capacities, SDC engagements in the sector were cost- effectively backed through this mandate. Moreover, the relevant knowledge is managed and the expertise was fedback into the international debate and made available to the wider community of the Swiss development cooperation. Skat’s proper in-country experience, sector expertise and extended networks and professional resource centre activities were widely recognized by the beneficiaries of the mandate and were most significant to its successful delivery.
