Development and Cooperation

In the Arctic, the effects of global warming are particularly severe. While Indigenous peoples and local communities are under pressure due to the melting of polar ice, the region is gaining economic and geopolitical importance for other countries. In its role as observer on the Arctic Council, Switzerland uses its expertise to promote peaceful and sustainable development within the polar region. Alexandra Baumann, head of the Prosperity and Sustainability Division of the FDFA and responsible for polar issues shares her views in this interview.

This year, Switzerland is chairing the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), an intergovernmental organisation with 35 member states that has worked for thirty years to strengthen democratic systems. Adrian Junker, Switzerland's ambassador in Stockholm and the council's acting chairperson, and Patricia Danzi, director general of the SDC, are convinced that this commitment is more important now than ever.

The world has not faced such a large number of conflicts since the end of the Second World War. One of these has been ongoing in Sudan for over two years, with catastrophic consequences for the civilian population. More than half of the population is now affected by hunger. Millions of people have been displaced. Switzerland is committed, within the framework of its international cooperation, peace promotion and within the UN, to ending the war and mitigating its humanitarian consequences.

Switzerland is hosting the second edition of the Global Conference on Cyber Capacity Building (GC3B) between 13 and 14 May. The conference will focus on the secure use of new digital technologies in development cooperation work. International Geneva therefore serves as a platform to bring together stakeholders from the cybersecurity and digital development sectors. The GC3B is also a key event of the inaugural Geneva Cyber Week.

Switzerland is returning confiscated illegally acquired assets to Uzbekistan. The stolen funds will now benefit the people of Uzbekistan thanks to a UN trust fund, the Uzbekistan Vision 2030 Fund, set up by Switzerland and Uzbekistan together with the UN. Among other things, this will see healthcare facilities for expectant mothers modernised at a cost of USD 43.5 million. An interview with the Ambassador of Switzerland in Tashkent, Konstantin Obolensky.

In Afghanistan, 24 million people rely on humanitarian aid and most of the population live below the poverty line. Switzerland has now opened a humanitarian office in Kabul. Four specialists from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) and ten local employees are working on the ground to ensure vulnerable communities are getting support to meet their basic needs.