Switzerland’s record on aid

Aid volume

• In 2006, Switzerland provided the equivalent of 0.39% of its national income (GNI) in official development assistance (ODA). This leaves Switzerland behind the average effort of OECD countries, which was 0.46% of GNI in 2006.

• At the Monterrey Conference in 2002, Switzerland made a commitment to increasing ODA to 0.4% of GNI by 2010. Between 2003 and 2005, Switzerland had met the target, but in 2006, its aid level came in just below.

• Moreover, Switzerland’s 0.4% target for 2010 is far behind the international development target of 0.7% of GNI. Switzerland – which is not an EU member – has not set a timeframe for achieving the international of 0.7% ODA/GNI unlike the neighboring EU-15 who will meet the target by 2015. In addition, the EU-15 minimum target for individual countries for 2010 is 0.51% of GNI and so more ambitious than Switzerland’s target for the same year.

• At the 2005 UN World Summit in New York, the Swiss President noted that Switzerland would review its aid commitments with a view to increasing development aid after 2008.

Switzerland’s willingness to consider more ambitious aid commitments and targets from 2008 onwards is very welcome. Specifically, Switzerland should commit itself to implementation of the 0.7% ODA/GNI target in the near future. This would bring Switzerland into line with a number of OECD donor countries and would further reinforce Switzerland’s strong reputation in both humanitarian and development cooperation.