Now it's final: on 22 May, the Federal Council adopted the long-awaited dispatch on the 2025-2028 international cooperation strategy - and is sticking to financing the reconstruction of Ukraine at the expense of the Global South.
"An extraordinary situation like the war in Ukraine requires extraordinary resources; the people in the Global South must not foot the bill for this," says Andreas Missbach, Managing Director of Alliance Sud. The "Swiss Competence Center for International Cooperation and Development Policy" had campaigned in recent months to ensure that the CHF 1.5 billion contribution for Ukraine would not be taken from the international cooperation budget over the next four years - and is now disappointed by the Confederation's final decision.
Aid organizations had expressed outrage in the run-up to the decision. Mission 21 also supported Alliance Sud's campaign to strengthen solidarity with people in the Global South and to avoid jeopardizing long-standing partnerships. As Mission 21 is dependent on contributions from the federal government, the cuts will also be felt here.
â–º Alliance Sud media release (pdf)
â–º Alliance Sud briefing paper: "Strengthening Switzerland's international cooperation" (pdf)
