Mission Statement

The Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations organisations in Rome is representing Switzerland at the United Nations Rome based agencies. Rome is the headquarters of the United Nations’ three main international organisations dealing with food and agriculture (FAO founded in 1945, WFP founded in 1961 and IFAD founded in 1977) and of other UN organisations.

Rationale

In the Swiss Federal Constitution dated 18 April 1999, the five objectives of Swiss foreign policy are laid out. The Swiss Confederation shall strive:

• To preserve the independence of Switzerland and its welfare,
• To contribute to alleviate need and poverty in the world,
• To promote respect for human rights and democracy,
• To promote the peaceful coexistence of nations,
• To promote the preservation of natural resources.

Switzerland wants to play an active role in formulating problem-solving approaches to international issues and commit itself to building a strong international multilateral network. Multilateral fora and institutions do play a key role in establishing norms and principles for international action, in devising solutions to address new issues, in channelling financial resources and expertise, in promoting dialogue between actors at all levels (local, national and international) and in advocating for issues of concern.

Switzerland works within the multilateral system by building close relationships with partner organisations - supporting mandate implementation, promoting excellence, development and reform and creating synergies - at three levels:

• As a shareholder it contributes financially to partner organisations, participates in governing bodies, contributes to strategy formulation, takes part in joint decision-making and coordination, influences objectives, policies and working methods, and participates in donor support groups.
• As a stakeholder it represents concerns of partner actors, articulates positions on issues and strategies, advocates to create awareness of and commitment for the issues at stake, and represents Swiss interests and policies.
• As an operational actor it contributes conceptually to operational approaches and makes expert personnel and material supplies available.