Walter B. Gyger studied public management at the University of St. Gallen, where he also obtained his doctorate. He holds an honorary doctorate in philosophy from the Pedagogical Academy of the University of Russia. In 1974, Walter B. Gyger joined the Swiss diplomatic service. In 1991, the Swiss government appointed him ambassador to Senegal, Mali, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, and The Gambia. From 1995 to 1999, he was Head of the Swiss Mission to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva. Subsequently, he represented Switzerland in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and Turkey as well as Azerbaijan. His last diplomatic assignment was in Moscow as Switzerland’s ambassador to the Russian Federation.
Walter B. Gyger joined Rotary in 1994. His first club was RC Dakar Alizés, then he was a founding member of RC Geneva Palais Wilson, later he became a member of RC Delhi Midtown and RC Ankara. Back in Geneva, he founded the RC Geneva International. From 2015 to 2021, he was the main representative of Rotary International to the UN Office and other international organizations in Geneva. In this capacity, he organized the first Rotary Day at the United Nations in Geneva and the first Rotary Peace Projects Incubator.
Walter B. Gyger has been an honorary member of SANCHILD since 2020 and took over the leadership of the Advisory Board in 2022.