About us

Membership

If you are considering becoming a member, please visit our bilingual page related to how to join our network.

Mandate & Mission

The Mandate & Mission of SDC’s PGE network are linked to its 4 thematic functions, that are to:

• Manage selected strategic partners who receive core contributions from the SDC's section with the same name (list with links to come soon);
• Do policy dialogue, among others by linking field-related activities and thematic guidance/advice with global initiatives (including to the UN Security Council and the OECD-DAC) and vice versa;
• Provide thematic guidance and operational advice to the Swiss representations, the Swiss government’s organisational units and partners;
• Promote individual and organisational learning and knowledge sharing related to:
  - professional and methodological knowledge;
  - Best practices/experience sharing in Peace, Governance and Equality related topics;
  - Information on related tools and their application, as well as training opportunities.

Who We Are

Our network’s membership is composed of Swiss governmental staff, development and humanitarian practitioners/partners worldwide. Members can subscribe, and contribute in different ways to the network via a separate internal platform (Microsoft Teams).

At SDC’s Head Office, our Themes & Resources are handled by the Peace, Governance and Equality section.

The network’s facilitation is under the responsibility of the following Senior Policy Advisors/Focal Points:

Sidonia GABRIEL, Senior Policy Advisor/Focal Point for Peace, Human Rights and Culture
Sidonia has over 20 years expertise, out of which 10 years in fragile and conflict affected contexts, in conflict analysis, peacebuilding, prevention and the triple nexus as well as dialogue and mediation processes. Prior to her current assignment, she had advisory functions for the European Union, the United Nations, for local and international civil society organisations as well as for the Swiss government.

In her current function, she is the Swiss representative to the OECD-DAC INCAF network that brings together donor countries that are members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). Since 2025, Sidonia is one of the vice-chairs of INCAF.

Benoît MEYER-BISCH, Senior Policy Advisor/Focal Point for  Governance
Lawyer by profession and a member of this network since its beginning (2009), Benoît has over 20 years of professional experience in international cooperation - mainly related to Governance and Human Rights - out of which 14 years on the field. For SDC, in Afghanistan, Benin and Mongolia, as well as at SDC's headquarters in Switzerland for the Horn of Africa (Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan) and in the Thematic Division. Before joining SDC, for a Swiss Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in Brazil and Nepal.

In his current function, he is also the Swiss representative to the OECD-DAC GovNet, hence the Governance network composed of donor countries members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the OECD. Since 2025, Benoît chairs the GovNet, with Canada and Austria as vice-chairs.

Benoît is also the overall caretaker of this website, and directly responsible for its governance-related part.

Jacqueline LEHMANN, Senior Policy Advisor/Focal Point for Gender Equality and Social Inclusion
Jackie has over 10 years of professional experience in international cooperation, with a focus on humanitarian aid, gender-based violence, gender equality and good governance. She has worked for SDC in South Sudan and Niger as well as at SDC's headquarters in Switzerland. Before joining SDC, in Uganda, Peru and the Swiss Private Sector.

In her current function, she is the Swiss representative to the OECD-DAC Gendernet, the network that brings together donor countries members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC).

Frequently Asked Questions FAQ

• How do I become a member of our network?

  Please visit our registration page on how to become a member.

• What do we do?

  The PGE network provides thematic guidance for, and promote knowledge exchange and learning among Swiss governmental staff, development and humanitarian practitioners and partners at large. For more information, explore our webpage. We structured our work into 3 main themes.

• How do you measure progress?

  We have reference idicators for each PGE theme. The indicators are based on UN's Sustainable Development Goals SDGs. Our page PGE@SDC tells you all about the tools we use to measure progress.