Switzerland

Key figures:

187,423 Libyans currently internally displaced (IDPs)

403,978 returned IDPs (returns registered in 2016 - April 2018)

56,204 registered refugees and asylumseekers in the State of Libya

23,370 overall persons arrived in Italy3

1,382 monitoring visits to detention centres in 2018 and 2019

2,709 asylum-seekers and refugees released from detention in 2018

2,863 vulnerable refugees and asylumseekers evacuated since November 2017

Funding

USD 88.1 M required for 2019

The United Kingdom, Sweden, United States and Switzerland have committed more than $215 million to improving the health of Myanmar’s most vulnerable people through the UNOPS-managed Access to Health Fund.

Myanmar’s health system continues to improve, but significant health inequities remain. People living in conflict-affected areas are likely to experience poorer health outcomes, while those living in remote or hard-to-reach places are also more likely to suffer.

Overview

During the first nine months of 2018, just under 25,100 refugees were submitted by UNHCR for resettlement' to 19 countries in Europe.2 This is 24% less than the same period in 2017, but already two-thirds more than the average rate of 15,400 submissions per year during the previous 10 years.

Following the earthquake and tsunami that destroyed large parts of the region surrounding the city of Palu on the island of Sulawesi on 28 September 2018, on Monday evening a Swiss Humanitarian Aid advance team was dispatched to Indonesia to determine the most urgent needs. Swiss Humanitarian Aid, which is part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, had offered its assistance to the Indonesian government on Saturday.

« Nous nous félicitons de l’appel sans précédent publié le mercredi 7 novembre par les communautés religieuses de Suisse pour exprimer leur soutien aux réfugiés.

Cette initiative puissante de la part des représentants des communautés catholique, protestante, juive et musulmane de Suisse plaide pour un renforcement de la protection des réfugiés, faisant des suggestions pratiques aux autorités et appelant à une approche plus humaniste des questions relatives aux réfugiés.

“The unprecedented appeal that was made on Wednesday, 7 November, by Switzerland’s religious leaders in support of refugees is very much welcomed.

1. INTRODUCTION

Le Secrétariat d’État aux migrations (SEM) et la CRS ont tiré le 25 octobre 2018 un bilan positif de leur projet pilote commun SESAME, qui a permis à plusieurs centaines de personnes relevant du domaine migratoire de suivre une formation en soins infirmiers et de trouver un emploi dans ce secteur. Parmi elles figurent de nombreux réfugiés et personnes admises à titre provisoire.

Seventy-third session
Item 73 (b) of the provisional agenda*
Promotion and protection of all human rights; human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms

Saving lives is not a crime

Note by the Secretary-General

Bern, 03.09.2018 - The Lake Chad region, located in the borders Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon, has been seriously impacted by the armed conflict with the Boko Haram group. The local population is suffering from the violence, a disastrous humanitarian situation and inadequate infrastructure. Switzerland has committed CHF 20 million as part of a comprehensive approach involving humanitarian aid, development and peacebuilding.

La région du lac Tchad, frontalière avec le Nigéria, le Niger, le Tchad et le Cameroun, est le théâtre de violents affrontements avec le groupe Boko Haram. La population civile souffre des violences, de la situation humanitaire catastrophique et du manque d’infrastructures. En 2018, la Suisse s’engage à hauteur de 20 millions de francs dans les domaines de l’aide humanitaire, du développement et de la promotion de la paix, en privilégiant une approche globale.

UN CHEMIN: NON PAS LE PLUS COURT, MAIS LE PLUS DURABLE

Récemment, le directeur d’une organisation caritative suisse m’a envoyé un livre au titre résolument provocateur: Früher war alles schlechter («Autrefois, tout était pire»). Quelques semaines plus tôt, lors d’un trajet en train dans le nord de l’Inde, nous avions médité sur l’état du monde. Pour l’humanité dans son ensemble, notre «bilan intermédiaire» était positif. Par cet ouvrage, mon compagnon de voyage voulait certainement me dire que nous n’étions pas seuls devant ce constat.

Key figures:

192,513 Libyans currently internally displaced (IDPs)

372,741 returned IDPs (returns registered in 2016 - April 2018)

54,937 registered refugees and asylumseekers in the State of Libya

19,303 persons arrived in Italy by sea in 2018

871 monitoring visits to detention centres so far in 2018

1,527 asylum-seekers and refugees released from detention so far in 2018

1,858 vulnerable refugees and asylumseekers evacuated since November 2017

Funding:
USD 85 M required for 2018

Editorial

L’eau est un bien qui nous réunit sur cette planète dite «bleue». Notre totale dépendance à sa disponibilité limitée et à sa qualité relative nous porte à lui conférer une valeur centrale. Celle-ci nous conduirat-elle vers des conflits sans fin comme le dépeignent certains? Ou au contraire vers davantage de dialogue et de coopération, prémices de sociétés plus paisibles?

Communiqué de presse, 15.08.2018

In line with Switzerland's humanitarian tradition and its values of shared responsibility, equal opportunities and sustainable development, at its meeting on 15 August 2018 the Federal Council reached decisions on Switzerland’s contributions to the following four United Nations specialised agencies: the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the agency for gender equality and the empowerment of women, UN Women.

Ankara – Istanbul has increasingly become a destination city for migrants and refugees from countries such as Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia. According to the latest available figures from the Turkish Directorate General of Migration Management (DGMM), these nationalities make up a majority of the over 500,000 registered foreign nationals in Istanbul and the 3,9 million registered nationwide. Many migrants and refugees from these countries are vulnerable and in need of assistance.

See at a glance how the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot supported its partners' response to global humanitarian crises in this overview of major shipments and events from January through June 2018.

Dushanbe, Tajikistan, 16 July 2018 – A delegation from Tajik governmental institutions involved in flood management went on a study tour to Switzerland and Bosnia and Herzegovina to learn to better deal with floods and strengthen the capacity in Tajikistan. The tour, which took place from 30 June to 7 July, was organized by the UNDP with the financial support from the Swiss Agency for Development.

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN (16 July 2018) — The Embassy of Switzerland in Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed an agreement today to support the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF), recently established by the Government of Pakistan to finance investments in disaster risk reduction and preparedness that have high economic impact.