International development cooperation

The European Development Days is a development forum that the European Commission has organised since 2006. This year’s theme was gender equality under the thread ‘Women and Girls at the Forefront of Sustainable Development’.

Today, Sweden entered into a new multiyear agreement to support the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). With this support, Sweden is consolidating its position as one of the largest donors to the fund.

The Barents cooperation has laid the foundation for far-reaching people-to-people cooperation and high-level political dialogue in the European Arctic. The 25th anniversary of cooperation was marked by a seminar at the Permanent Mission of Sweden to the European Union on 5 June to highlight cooperation in an EU perspective and to look ahead.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has today appointed Ulrika Modéer Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). As part of the UNDP leadership, Ms Modéer will lead the strategic work on financing issues and external communications.

The objective of Swedish international development cooperation is to create opportunities for better living conditions for people living in poverty and under oppression. The starting point is the policy framework for Swedish development cooperation and humanitarian assistance, as well as the principles of aid effectiveness and effective development cooperation. Development cooperation shall contribute towards implementing the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate change.

In April 2007 the Government adopted a Swedish strategy for multilateral development cooperation (UD2007/7290/MU) to establish an integrated and strategic Swedish cooperation with multilateral organisations. Since then the Government Offices and the agencies concerned have put a great deal of work into implementing the strategy.

This is a press release published by both the Government of Sweden and the Government of Canada.

‘The Politics of Peace’ will be the theme when the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) host the fifth annual Stockholm Forum on Peace and Development on 7–9 May. The Forum will gather a number of international experts for discussion and debate on how global cooperation on conflict prevention and sustainable peace can be strengthened. The speakers include Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for International Development Cooperation and Climate Isabella Lövin.

Sweden has today made pledges of more than SEK 2 billion towards the Global Environmental Facility. This entails an increase of Sweden’s contribution to the fund of more than 50 per cent for the period 2018–2022, compared with the period 2014–2018.

Today sees the opening of the Stockholm Forum on Gender Equality – a global conference with 600 participants from over 100 countries. The Forum will bring together activists, academics, politicians and entrepreneurs who put their energies into making the world more gender-equal.

Funds totalling SEK 1 billion will be used to enhance gender equality for women and girls around the world. This was decided by the Government at its meeting on 12 April. It is the first time that Sweden’s Government has adopted a global thematic strategy for gender equality.

Violent conflicts throughout the world cause enormous human suffering, and they also have a major economic impact. A new study by the UN and the World Bank – Pathways for Peace – shows that violent conflicts cause a drop in global GDP of 13.3 per cent per year. According to the study, investments in conflict prevention measures can mean savings of between USD 5 billion and 70 billion per year.

Reduced emissions, improved resilience to climate change, and more sustainable management of water, ecosystems and natural resources. These are some of the goals aimed for in development efforts.

Sixteen million young girls and teenagers give birth each year – most of whom live in low-income countries. Unwanted and forced pregnancies can be prevented. But the right to contraception and safe abortions is currently under attack.

Within the framework of this strategy, Sweden’s development cooperation with Sudan is to contribute to sustainable peace, improved conditions for good public service delivery, and strengthened resilience. The strategy will apply in the period 2018–2022 and provide a total of SEK 1 200 million.

Leaders from all over the world will gather in Stockholm to intensify international efforts for gender equality. The Stockholm Forum on Gender Equality brings together close to 500 key representatives from civil society organisations, governments, business, and academia. The aim is to find solutions, take new initiatives, and strengthen co-operation in the international fight for gender equality.

On 14 February, Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström presented the 2018 Statement of Foreign Policy in the Riksdag. Check against delivery.

The Swedish Government and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement, with Sweden making a historic commitment of approximately US$370 million in flexible funds to WFP over the next four years (2018 to 2021). The contribution is the largest ever made by a donor within a WFP Strategic Partnership Agreement.

The Government has decided to allocate SEK 800 million over four years (2018–2021) to the Strategy for Sweden’s regional development cooperation in sub-Saharan Africa. The strategy has been updated to more clearly focus on the link between humanitarian assistance and long-term development, particularly in the Horn of Africa countries. The Government considers that there is considerable potential for Sweden to contribute to increased resilience to crises and disasters, and to conflict prevention and conflict management regionally.