The Sustainable Urban and Regional Development Program (SURGE) is a global umbrella program that supports developing countries to foster green, resilient and inclusive urban and regional development.
SURGE is supported by multiple donors. Its founding donor is the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). Additional donors include: Austria’s Ministry of Finance, the Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark and the Korean Research Institute for Human Settlements.
SURGE is composed of six trust funds: an anchor trust fund contributing to sustainable urban and regional development globally, under which three global, one regional, and one country program (Rwanda) are funded, and five associated country trust funds focused on Bolivia, Indonesia, Peru, Serbia, and South Africa. Its combined budget stands at over US$57.5 million.
Key Results
One of the key findings of the recent SURGE evaluation is that the program’s emphasis on knowledge generation and exchange has enabled greater engagement with clients. Since its launch, the program has empowered cities across more than 16 countries, driving US$2.6 billion in World Bank investments and transforming urban spaces into engines of sustainable development.