All news (850)
FDFA State Secretary Yves Rossier on a working visit to Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia
02.10.2014
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Press release
EDA
FDFA State Secretary Yves Rossier is currently on a working visit to the Horn of Africa. After an initial stop in Somalia he arrived today in Kenya, where a visit to a refugee camp is among the items on his agenda. He will conclude his tour of the region with talks in Ethiopia.
UN Human Rights Council: Switzerland welcomes the objectives of the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
26.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
Geneva, 26.09.2014 – The Human Rights Council today ends its three-week autumn session, which opened on 8 September 2014 with the first appearance of the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid Al-Hussein of Jordan. Switzerland used this first meeting with the High Commissioner to inform him of its priorities in the Human Rights Council and to assure him of its support. Switzerland welcomes the fact that the High Commissioner's objectives largely correspond to its own. The Human Rights Council yesterday adopted a resolution tabled by Switzerland on dealing with the past.
Switzerland’s role in negotiations for a new development agenda: building bridges, influencing outcomes, offering concrete proposals
25.09.2014
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Article
DEZA
The UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will expire in 2015. Switzerland is working with the international community towards developing new global development goals. Ambassador Michael Gerber, special representative for global sustainable development, is representing Switzerland at the international negotiations for the post-2015 development agenda. In this interview he looks back on the MDGs, highlights what is different about the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and talks about Switzerland’s position.
Swiss budget for Syrians in desperate need increased by CHF 20 million
23.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
To improve the desperate situation of people affected by the conflict in Syria, Switzerland’s Humanitarian Aid has increased its support measures both for people in Syria and the over three million refugees in the neighbouring states. Switzerland’s budget since the start of the Syrian crisis totals CHF 105 million.
Switzerland takes further measures to fight the Ebola epidemic
23.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
Switzerland is making an additional CHF 5 million available to support efforts to prevent the further spread of the Ebola epidemic and provide the people living in affected countries with the assistance they need. This announcement was made by the President of the Swiss Confederation, Didier Burkhalter, in New York in the margins of the United Nations General Assembly. The contribution is intended to support Switzerland's multilateral partner organisations in the field of humanitarian aid in their activities in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, as well as its bilateral aid projects in Liberia.
Switzerland sends winter equipment for war refugees in Northern Iraq
18.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
Switzerland has decided to send relief aid to the greater Erbil area in Northern Iraq. The cargo consists primarily of cold weather tents intended to help people displaced by the war to survive the winter. Today, a specialist from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) is flying to Erbil to prepare for distributing the aid. More specialists from the Swiss cooperation office in Amman will join him on the ground.
Serbian MPs gain an insight into Swiss best practice
15.09.2014
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Article
DEZA
Serbian MPs are visiting Bern to meet with lawmakers. The focus of the discussions is on Swiss best practice in the field of communication and financial oversight. The meeting is part of an SDC project in partnership with the Serbian National Assembly and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Switzerland steps up response to Ebola epidemic in West Africa
12.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
Switzerland is stepping up its aid in the fight against the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. Swiss Humanitarian Aid is pledging an additional CHF 2 million to fund various direct measures in Liberia.
Serbian parliamentary delegation to visit Switzerland
10.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
A group of parliamentarians from Belgrade will visit Bern from 14 to 19 September 2014 to learn more about the Swiss political system, its standards and practices. The project is intended to give impetus to the reform of the Serbian legislature, which is being supported by the SDC.
Just as water can contribute to conflict, it can also be a source of reconciliation
09.09.2014
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Article
DEZA
The water crisis and its consequences on access to drinking water, food security and the rural economy are one of the causes of the Syrian conflict. But shared and efficient management of water resources could be a factor for reconciliation. With this in mind, the SDC in partnership with the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies has prepared a report on the water situation as well as that of displaced people in the strategic region of the Orontes River basin.
The municipalities of Benin are motivated
04.09.2014
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Article
DEZA
Blandine Codija Agossou is monitoring the implementation of the programme to support the management of the decentralised literacy programme in Benin on behalf of the SDC. The project began in 2014. It aims to give the three departments in the north of the country autonomy in their management of adult literacy programmes.
The President of the Swiss Confederation, Didier Burkhalter, receives the head of UNRWA, Pierre Krähenbühl
02.09.2014
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Press release
EDA
The President of the Swiss Confederation, Didier Burkhalter, received on Tuesday in Bern the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the Swiss national Pierre Krähenbühl. The discussion focused on the crises in the Middle East and Switzerland's support for UNRWA.