Bilateral relations Switzerland–Guinea

Diplomatic relations between Switzerland and Guinea are good but limited in scope. Switzerland provided humanitarian aid to Guinea during the civil war in the 1990s and during the Ebola epidemic in 2014–16. The two countries have concluded several agreements on migration-related matters and debt reduction.

Key aspects of diplomatic relations

Switzerland has drawn up a strategy for sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2021–24.

Switzerland and Guinea have signed a series of bilateral agreements on trade, investment protection, international civil aviation, technical cooperation and migration (October 2011).

Switzerland, through its State Secretariat for Migration (SEM), supports technical and professional training projects aimed at facilitating the reintegration of young people into the workplace.

Guinea has a permanent representation in Geneva that is also accredited as an embassy in Switzerland. Switzerland is represented in Guinea by a consulate general.

Sub-Saharan Africa Strategy 2021–24 (PDF, 48 Pages, 3.1 MB, English)

Treaty database

Migration

Cooperation in education, research and innovation

Researchers who are citizens of Guinea can apply to the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) for Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships.

Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for Foreign Scholars and Artists (SERI)

Development cooperation and humanitarian aid

Switzerland provided humanitarian assistance to Guinea during the civil wars of the 1990s in neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone and during the fight against the Ebola epidemic from 2014 to 2016. Some of the projects initiated at that time are still ongoing.

Swiss citizens in Guinea

According to statistics on the Swiss abroad, 64 Swiss citizens were living in Guinea at the end of 2020 and 867 Guinean citizens were living in Switzerland.

History of bilateral relations

Diplomatic relations between Switzerland and Guinea were established in 1960. A Swiss consulate was opened in Conakry in 1959. The consulate was upgraded into an embassy, headed by a chargé d'affaires, in 1965, and was closed in 1992. Since 2001, Switzerland has maintained a consulate general in Conakry headed by an honorary representative.

In the 1960s, Switzerland signed a trade, investment protection and technical cooperation agreement with Guinea as well as an international civil aviation convention. However, the political actors who were in power in Guinea until 2010 obstructed the development of relations between the two countries.

Guinea, Historical Dictionary of Switzerland (de, fr, it)

Diplomatic documents of Switzerland, Dodis

Last update 26.01.2022

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