Locations
Switzerland and UNDP in action
Switzerland is a vital partner in UNDP’s mission to end extreme poverty and accelerate structural transformation to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As our 7th largest government contributor in 2022, Switzerland’s investment in UNDP is making a concrete difference to people’s lives and enables us to help countries address new development challenges. On the ground in 170 countries, UNDP works hand-in-hand with Swiss actors to prevent conflict, strengthen democratic governance and the rule of law, fight climate change, create opportunities for women and youth, and attract additional investments for sustainable development, in line with the priorities of the new Swiss International Cooperation Strategy 2021-2024.
In June 2022, the Federal Council renewed its partnership, committing CHF 147.8 million ($155 million over three years) in predictable financing to help UNDP deliver on its new Strategic Plan 2022-2025, a strong sign of Swiss support to multilateralism and global solidarity.
Switzerland’s support is making a concrete difference to people’s lives by helping to stabilize societies and strengthen institutions. In 2022-2023:
Moldova
In 2022-23, UNDP and Switzerland teamed up to support the socio-economic inclusion of refugees from Ukraine and the capacities of host communities accommodating people fleeing the war. To mitigate the impacts of the conflict on energy security in Moldova, UNDP, Switzerland and the EU also helped establish a new Energy Vulnerability Fund which provides compensation to more than 800,000 households to reduce their energy poverty. As part of longer-term interventions and partnerships with diaspora, private sector and hometown associations, Switzerland and UNDP also supported more than 116 localities and 556,000 people to benefit from improved livelihoods and local public services.
Bangladesh
In addition to upgrading disaster risk management capacities in this disaster-prone country, UNDP and Switzerland have joined hands to strengthen the capacities of local governments (covering 250 unions) and the national government, to provide more pro-poor, effective and accountable services, promoting good governance and gender equality including through digital solutions.
Somalia
With support from Switzerland, UNDP works with UN-Women and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) to promote women’s meaningful participation, decision-making, and leadership in peacebuilding processes at national and community levels, in line with the global “Women, Peace and Security agenda”. In addition, over 1,600 women directly benefitted from alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, and legal aid through UNDP’s efforts.
Occupied Palestinian Territories
In Gaza up to 45% of the population face unemployment. With the Swiss agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), UNDP’s “Economic Stimulus” programme supports cash for work and technical and vocational training (TVET). UNDP is also improving the enabling environment for the private sector by expanding the economic resilience of 80+ SMEs and generating employment for vulnerable Gazan women and youth.
Burkina Faso, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan:
Though UNDP’s Global Programme on Rule of Law and Human Rights, co-funded by SDC, UNDP is contributing to improve the monitoring and reporting of human rights and is strengthening justice mechanisms to enable access to justice for women and marginalized groups where formal services have been out of reach or required support. In these four countries, over 4,500 detainees were released and over 2,000 people obtained justice, including through mobile courts.
Peru/Indonesia
In partnership with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), the UNDP Green Commodities Programme (GCP) strives to tackle the deep-rooted problems in the Indonesian palm oil sector and the Peruvian coffee and cocoa sectors through innovative multi-stakeholder approaches. In Peru, the joint technical assistance notably supported new measures promoting the sustainable national coffee cultivation in 450 districts.
Yemen
UNDP successfully averted a massive oil spill in the Red Sea, completing the transfer of 1M+ barrels of oil from the decaying FSO Safer supertanker with the ship at risk of breaking at anytime. Thanks to Switzerland, UNDP’s efforts prevented one of the largest environmental, and socio-economic catastrophe, which could have costed up to $20 billion in cleaning and wiped out livelihoods in the region.
The United Nations thanks donors for the generous support
We also thank the HSA Group, the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers, the Trafigura Foundation Octavia Engergy/Calvalley Petroleum, the Leo Balmer Foundation, and thousands of individuals for contributions.
Cooperation in Eastern Europe and Central Asia: Overall, Switzerland is the 2nd largest government partner to UNDP’s work in the region, with close country-level collaboration to help improve systems of governance at national and local levels and promote greener and more inclusive economies that leave no-one behind. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the partnership aims to contribute to the democratisation of local governance and more equitable, effective, and efficient public services for the citizens, particularly for water supply and wastewater management services. In North Macedonia, a flagship collaboration ($12 million for 2017-23) aims to address the growing flood-related challenges in the Polog Region and country-wide.
