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As has been the case to date, the Federal Act on International Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid dating back to the 1970s, is still an appropriate and sufficient legal basis for the activities being conducted today by the SDC and SECO. This conclusion was reached by the Federal Council in conferring its approval, in January 2010, and thereby confirming its position on the evaluation report commissioned by the Control Committee of the Council of States.
An efficient and sustainable strategy
The SDC coordinates the orientation of Switzerland’s international cooperation and implements its activities. In collaboration with SECO and other federal offices, it bases its actions on the Federal Act of 1976 on international development cooperation and humanitarian aid. Switzerland’s strategy in these fields is outlined in the Federal Council’s Dispatches to Parliament that are submitted every four years.
Every four years, the SDC, in collaboration with SECO, drafts Messages (Dispatches to Parliament) in which specific objectives and the development cooperation and humanitarian aid strategy are set. These Messages, three in number, have until now been submitted to Parliament separately. As of 2013, a single Message comprising four complementary framework credits will provide the base document for Switzerland’s development cooperation.
Message on the South
The overarching aim of cooperation with the countries of the South is the fight against poverty. The Message adopted for the period 2009-2012 sets six strategic tasks for Switzerland’s cooperation with the countries of the South:
- Support for poverty reduction in the priority countries
- Support for regions suffering from fragile state structures, conflicts or security risks
- Contribution by Switzerland to the establishment of a form of globalisation that favours development
- Financial participation in multilateral development organisations and active participation in their management and supervisory bodies
- Collaboration with relief agencies and research institutes as well as in the framework of public-private partnerships in Switzerland
- Coordination of development policy with the federal administration
Message on international humanitarian aid
Switzerland’s policy on international humanitarian aid aims to contribute to saving human lives in danger. Through preventive or rescue measures, humanitarian aid is primarily provided to populations that have fallen victim to natural disasters or armed conflicts. To achieve this, Swiss policy is based on a four-phase strategy:
- Prevention and preparedness
- Emergency aid (urgent relief and survival measures)
- Reconstruction
- Protection and advocacy
Message on the East
The aim of Switzerland’s cooperation with the countries of Eastern Europe is to support the countries of Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in their transition to a system of democracy and market economics. The projects of the SDC and SECO target the reduction of disparities within the enlarged European Union. Switzerland pursues the following two strategic objectives:
- Strengthen human rights and pluralist democracy through the establishment of political institutions that conform to the rule of law and are responsive to citizens’ needs.
- Promote economic and social development based on the principles of market economics and the prudent management of natural resources.