Country programmes

Burkina Faso is characterised by widespread poverty, a lack of basic infrastructure and a very young population. Internal destabilisation caused by violent conflicts and the impact of climate change are exacerbating the emergency this Sahelian country is already facing. Caritas Switzerland has been working in Burkina Faso since 2020, protecting mig...

Chad remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Its rural population is particularly affected by extreme poverty. Chad’s potential in terms of available natural resources is severely limited by several impediments to optimal agricultural production, making food insecurity one of the major areas of concern.

Ethiopia is among Caritas Switzerland’s larger Programmes, where its commitment started with an emergency response in 1974 and then shifted towards the Humanitarian-Development (HD) Nexus. This Nexus, enhanced with a peace component (HDP), remains a core pillar of this Country Strategy with its overarching objective to contribute to end poverty bas...

Malian society faces multiple vulnerabilities in daily life, for reasons including political and security instability, conflicts, a weak economy and climate change. Most of Mali’s population, almost half of which lead a life of extreme poverty, live in rural areas, which is where 90% of the poor are concentrated. People are particularly affected by...

More than three quarters of the population of South Sudan live in poverty and malnourishment is widespread. The security situation remains very fragile with repeated outbreaks of ethnic tensions and violence. The negative impact of climate change and recurring crises such as droughts, floods or armed hostilities aggravate the situation for the alre...

For over 20 years, Caritas Switzerland has been actively involved in the development of Uganda. Throughout this time, the country has undergone substantial transformation: after almost two decades, the war with the Lord’s Resistance Army ended. Subsequently, the majority of internally displaced people moved out of camps and returned to their areas ...

In Cambodia, the impacts of climate change and disasters are further eroding livelihoods and exacerbating migration. The future of the country depends on decreasing its vulnerability to climate change and on creating sustainable livelihoods for the poor. Caritas Switzerland in Cambodia is dedicated to address the underlying drivers of poverty.

Since 2011, Syria has gradually descended into civil war and displaced a considerable part of its population internally and to neighboring countries. With the vast majority of Syrian refugees staying in the region, neighbouring countries carry a large part of the burden. 

Tajikistan’s climatic conditions are challenging. With less than 10 % of national territory suitable for agriculture, food security is of persistent concern. 30 % of the population live below the national poverty line, inducing work migration that often leaves women and the elderly in charge of rural farms. Exacerbated by land degradation from defo...

Despite its abundance of natural resources and huge effort made by the Bolivian Government to reduce poverty, 35 % of the population still lives below the poverty line. Bolivia ranks among the poorest countries of South America, characterized by extreme differences in the distribution of income and urban-rural disparities.

Caritas Switzerland’s engagement in Haiti began with an emergency response 40 years ago. Since then, its strategy has evolved towards a joint humanitarian and development approach in this extremely fragile country. The objective of Caritas Switzerland’s country strategy for the 2021–2025 period is to contribute to the eradication of poverty in Hait...

Caritas Switzerland initiated a regional Venezuela Crisis Response (VCR) Programme in 2019, reorienting existing programmes in Brazil and Colombia towards the needs of millions of Venezuelans who fled to neighbouring countries without prospects for a return any time soon.

Under the motto of 'Leave no one behind!' the Caritas Switzerland Country Strategy 2021–2025 for Bosnia and Herzegovina reinforces its fight against poverty through the thematic priority areas of income and jobs generation; addressing the challenges of endogen and exogen induced migration; and tackling the linkages between climate  change and pover...

Caritas Switzerland (CACH) is implementing projects in Kosovo for more than 20 years. It began with humanitarian interventions directly after the war and shifted soon after into development cooperation. Today, Kosovo is still a country which faces manifold challenges (for instance high unemployment, weak institutions, emigration and re-immigration,...