What we do Water & Food

Water and food programme

Securing livelihoods through sustainable agriculture and water management

Access to water, healthy food and an intact environment is the basis for food security and a self-determined life. Vivamos strengthens local solutions in agroecological agriculture and resource conservation.

The challenges

In rural regions of Latin America and East Africa, the natural foundations of life for many people are under threat: water, soil and forests are overused or disappearing. Climate change is exacerbating the situation and threatening biodiversity and crop yields; hunger is on the rise again.

Our approach

With our ‘Water and Food’ programme, we empower smallholder farmers and local authorities with knowledge and concrete solutions. Together, we focus on:

Protection and sustainable management of natural resources
Agroecological and climate-adapted farming methods
Practical knowledge about balanced nutrition and food utilisation
Sustainable water management

Our impact

Vivamos supports smallholder families in increasing yields, improving incomes and protecting the natural resources they depend on – for current and future generations. Examples of our impact can be found in our Alliance's nutrition report:

Alliance Sufosec: Global nutrition report 2024

Our contribution to the SDGs

With the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the international community has created a framework for joint solutions to overcome the major challenges we are currently facing – such as migration, climate change, environmental destruction, poverty and hunger. The Agenda names 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which define social, economic, and environmental policy milestones that should be reached worldwide by 2030. These goals apply to all countries – including Switzerland.

With the Water and Food Programme, we are contributing to the following SDGs:

SDG 1 No poverty SDG 2 Zero Hunger SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation SDG 8 Decent Work SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities SDG 13 Climate Action SDG 15 Life on Land