SWISS INNOVATION AT THE G20: FROM PRECISION TOOLS TO GLOBAL SOLUTIONS
Swiss Innovation at the G20 was developed as part of Switzerland’s engagement during South Africa’s G20 Presidency, with Swissnex South Africa curating an integrated science diplomacy intervention. The programme combined policy engagement, exhibition design, narrative framing, and science communication to position Switzerland’s innovation ecosystem in relation to global priorities of solidarity, equality, and sustainability.
Under the G20 theme Science, Technology and Innovation for Solidarity, Equality and Sustainability, Switzerland was represented at the G20 Research and Innovation Ministerial Meeting by Martina Hirayama, State Secretary for Education, Research and Innovation, accompanied by Mr Patrick Voch from SERI. In her engagement, the State Secretary acknowledged the work of the Research and Innovation Working Group and highlighted key Swiss priorities, including international STI cooperation, open science, open innovation, biodiversity data infrastructure, human genomics and science engagement. Switzerland’s contributions to the RIWG included participation in the drafting of the Tshwane Declaration and the development of G20 recommendations on science engagement, as well as active involvement in the Open Innovation Platform.
Complementing Switzerland’s policy engagement, Swissnex at the Swiss Embassy in Pretoria designed a public-facing programme illustrating how science diplomacy can operate across formal negotiations, exhibition spaces, and cultural formats. In the G20 Exhibition Space, the Swiss showcase Icons of Ingenuity linked historic Swiss inventions, including the Swiss Army Knife, Velcro, and the railway clock, with contemporary developments in quantum research, biodiversity science, clean energy, MedTech, and open innovation. The exhibition, brochure, and short film conveyed a consistent narrative highlighting Swiss approaches to innovation that integrate precision, practical application, and responsibility in addressing global challenges.
This narrative was further extended on the margins of the G20 through a Quantum Computing Theatre Show, delivered in partnership with the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, the Science Diplomacy Capital for Africa, and GESDA. The production brought together researchers, innovators, policymakers, and diplomats and used performance-based methods to explore the societal implications of quantum technologies, providing an alternative platform for engaging diverse audiences with emerging scientific developments.
The State Secretary was joined by a Swiss scientific delegation for the scientific engagements following the G20, representing the EDA domain and the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, including expertise in international relations and the International Programmes in Research and Innovation (IPFI). The delegation also included senior representation from the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology, the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute as the Leading House for Africa, and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.
Through ministerial engagements, institutional exchanges, and university-level dialogue, the programme enabled direct interaction between Swiss and South African counterparts across government, research funding, innovation agencies, and higher education. A key outcome of these engagements was the signing of an innovation Memorandum of Understanding between the Swiss Leading House for Africa and South Africa’s National Research Foundation and Technology Innovation Agency, establishing a framework for strengthened cooperation in research, innovation, and capacity development.
