All news (850)
Switzerland welcomes the conclusion of the new disaster risk reduction framework
18.03.2015
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Press release
EDA
Following days of negotiations, the delegations at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction (WCDRR) in Sendai, Japan, have adopted a new international framework, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030), which sets out the priorities for disaster risk reduction for the next 15 years. Manuel Bessler, the delegate of the Federal Council for Swiss Humanitarian Aid and head of the Swiss delegation in Sendai, welcomed the new framework, which will give new impetus to the world in the field of disaster prevention.
Homes destroyed by the tsunami and war: Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter visits Swiss reconstruction project in Sri Lanka
18.03.2015
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Press release
EDA
In Sri Lanka, Switzerland is supporting the reconstruction of homes and villages that were destroyed by the tsunami in 2004 and the civil war that ended in 2009. Federal Councillor Didier Burkhalter has visited Akkarai, a village in Jaffna in the north of the country.
Local recipe for a global issue
17.03.2015
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Article
DEZA
A public discussion organised by the SDC on 18 March 2015 in Bern brings together experts and entrepreneurs united in the aim to fight hunger through innovative solutions. Among them is Paul Murphy, chief executive of VALID Nutrition, a social enterprise active in marketing ready-to-use therapeutic food. On the basis of a successful experience in Malawi, he advocates locally implanted businesses as a more effective means of addressing malnutrition than traditional aid and charity programmes.
President Sommaruga receives Atifete Jahjaga, President of the Republic of Kosovo, on an official working visit
16.03.2015
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Press release
EDA
On Monday, 16 March, President Sommaruga received Kosovan President Atifete Jahjaga in Bern on an official working visit. The two presidents discussed current developments in Kosovo and bilateral cooperation including migration issues and police cooperation.
Efforts to save Timbuktu’s cultural heritage attract attention from all over the world
12.03.2015
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Article
DEZA
An international conference has been held in Mali’s capital, Bamako, to take stock of efforts currently under way to rehabilitate the cultural heritage of northern Mali, which has been threatened and damaged by Islamist groups. Switzerland is at the forefront of this rescue operation. The SDC is contributing over CHF 1 million to the preservation of ancient manuscripts and the restoration of mosques, mausoleums and libraries in the city of Timbuktu.
"Disaster risk reduction has become a global issue"
11.03.2015
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Article
DEZA
Previously coordinator of the SDC's office in Sri Lanka, Philipp Beutler is now responsible for disaster risk reduction within the agency. He will be part of the Swiss delegation going to Sendai, Japan, where a new international framework for action is to be discussed and approved on the matter of managing disaster risks.
Risk prevention rather than disaster response
11.03.2015
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Article
DEZA
The SDC designs all of its projects with a view to reducing the risk of disasters, so as to ensure the sustainability of its efforts in countries of the South. It also takes a leading role in multilateral discussions on the subject. Ten years after the adoption of an initial "Framework for Action" for risk reduction, the international community is preparing to update its methods of intervention at a summit in Sendai, Japan.
A hard road ahead to full gender equality (de)
09.03.2015
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Article
EDA
Maya Tissafi, Deputy Director of the SDC and Head of South Cooperation Department, on International Women's Day.
Aiming for gender equality
03.03.2015
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Article
DEZA
The elimination of gender-based discrimination is a goal the SDC aims to integrate in as many of its projects as possible. Twenty years after the adoption of the historic Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995, several encouraging results have been achieved. Switzerland is now working to ensure that the gender issue is addressed in each of the new sustainable development goals (SDGs).
FDFA State Secretary Yves Rossier has visited South Africa and Burundi
27.02.2015
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Press release
EDA
As part of a four-day visit ending today, the State Secretary of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), Yves Rossier, has held political consultations in South Africa and Burundi. In South Africa, the two parties established a platform for cooperation in the area of human rights. In Burundi, the State Secretary met with President Pierre Nkurunziza as well as several key stakeholders in light of the elections to be held in June of this year.
First working visit to Bern by Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna
26.02.2015
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Press release
EDA
Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter received his Polish counterpart, Grzegorz Schetyna, today in Bern. Their talks focused on bilateral relations one year after the adoption of a joint declaration on closer cooperation, Switzerland's enlargement contribution to reduce economic and social disparities in the enlarged European Union (EU), and the two countries' relations with the EU.
«Un seul monde / Eine Welt» – transport dossier
23.02.2015
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Article
DEZA