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Projects in Iraq, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon

Crisis in Syria: Thousands of refugees in Iraq and Lebanon

"You have to focus on each life saved"
Interview with Manuel Bessler, Humanitarian Aid Delegate of the Swiss Confederation

Interview with Martin Zirn, expert on mission for the UNHCR in Iraq

Interview with Patrizio Jellici, coordinator for the UNHCR in Lebanon (DRS4)

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Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon

Website of the SDC in Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon: www.swiss-cooperation.admin.ch/middleeast

Crisis in Syria

Switzerland’s commitment in Syria is concentrated around the following three axes.

Humanitarian Aid
Switzerland provides humanitarian aid to protect and help people most affected by the crisis both in Syria and in neighbouring countries. The SDC’s aid, which currently amounts to CHF 20 million, includes support to different international organisations (ICRC, UNHCR, WFP, FAO, UNICEF, UNRWA) as well as the direct actions it is conducting in the north of Lebanon and in Jordan.

Factsheet

The Federal Council has submitted a request to Parliament to increase the funds available for humanitarian aid to the people of Syria to CHF 5 million, 30.11.2012
Support for the Syrian refugees in Turkey, 19.11.2012
Project «Cash for hosting»
Project «Schools rehabilitation for Syrian Refugees, Jordan»

Switzerland is also contributing USD 55,000 via the Human Security Division of the FDFA to a rural hospital project in the north of Syria (sanitary equipment and medicines).

For a political solution to the conflict
Switzerland is committed to the search for a political solution to the crisis in Syria. It supports the political mission of the Special Envoy of the League of Arab States and the United Nations. In this context, Switzerland provided logistical support to an initiative known as “Day After” which is being promoted by some 50 Syrian members of the opposition both within and outside the country with the aim of defining a vision and a set of principles on a political transition in their country.

Fight against impunity
In the framework of the United Nations General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, Switzerland has on several occasions asked that the Security Council refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to ensure that the perpetrators of war crimes or crimes against humanity – in all parties to the conflict – do not go unpunished.

Switzerland supports the commission of the Human Rights Council established to investigate war crimes occurring in Syria, and it has pressed for a prolongation of the commission’s mandate. Carla Del Ponte, former attorney general of Switzerland and former Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, is a member of the commission.

FDFA Media Releases on the Uprisings in the Arab World

SDC cooperation strategy for Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, 2010-2014

The SDC has been present in the Near East for many years and implements numerous development cooperation and humanitarian aid programmes in the region.

Reliable and peaceful living conditions are to be created for various groups:

Refugees
Internally displaced persons
Vulnerable population and migrant groups
Communities that are particularly exposed to the risk of natural disasters.

While there has been a general decrease in poverty, there are still many vulnerable population groups in these countries. The socio-economic consequences of conflicts worsen the situation of families, especially women and children who are already suffering from legal and structural discrimination. Migrant workers from Asia and Africa are exposed to precarious living conditions and discrimination. The number of unemployed is particularly high, for instance, in refugee communities. When young people lack education and training – and therefore the opportunity to take part in economic and public life – a country's economic growth prospects are diminished, as are any chances of democratic change within society. Social and political strife is often fertile ground for religiously motivated political extremism.

Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria are also greatly at risk of natural disasters such as flooding, earthquakes and drought. This brings additional threats to the region and the populations living there. Dealing with water shortages at the regional level remains a major challenge.

The Swiss Government's bilateral commitment	2010 Mio. CHF	2011 Mio. CHF	2012* Mio. CHF

SDC^a
Bilateral development cooperation	1.86	2.64	0.99
Humanitarian aid	15.09	15.13	21.52
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO)
Economic Cooperation and Development	0.30	–	6.63
Total SDC/SECO commitment	17.25	17.77	29.14

Other Federal Offices
FDFA Human Security Division and Directorate of International Law	0.60	0.45	0.08
Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS)	0.10	0.04	–
State Secretariat for Education and Research (SER)	0.05	0.06	0.06
Total other Federal Offices	0.75	0.55	0.14

Total	18.00	18.32	29.28

* planned; total based on available data
Bilateral development cooperation excluding programme contributions to NGOs
– = nil or amount < 5'000 CHF

^a Excluding multilateral contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) of 5.3 mil. CHF in 2010 and of 6.1 mil.CHF in 2011

Humanitarian aid and development cooperation: priorities

The SDC implements its strategies in the following three areas:

Basic services and livelihoods of refugees, internally displaced persons and vulnerable population and migrant groups.
Protection of refugees, internally displaced persons and vulnerable population and migrant groups by fostering international humanitarian law and international agreements. For the “Protection in the Region” programme in Syria, the SDC works hand-in-hand with the FDFA's Directorate of Political Affairs and the FDJP's Federal Office for Migration.
Disaster risk reduction (DRR): building capacities to better handle crisis situations caused by man, nature or technology. These efforts include such things as the sustainable management of water resources.

The SDC Cooperation Office in Amman coordinates the activities of the SDC programme office in Beirut and Damascus as well as the programme in Iraq, where the SDC has no field office. The office in Damascus has been temporarily closed because of the armed conflict.

Background information on Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon

Facts and figures

Iraq

Jordan

Syria

Lebanon

	Fläche
	Bevölkerung
	Bevölkerungswachstumsquote pro Jahr (seit 1990)
	Lebenserwartung bei Geburt: Frauen / Männer
	Analphabetismusquote Erwachsene: Frauen / Männer
	Bruttoinlandprodukt BIP pro Kopf
	Bevölkerungsanteil mit weniger als 2US$

	438’317
	32.962
	2.9
	72.2 /65.9
	29.4 /14.0
	3'500.7
	..

	438’317
	6.181
	2.2
	74.9 /72.0
	10.8/4.2
	4'665.9
	1.6

185'000

20.820

1.8

77.5/74.3

23.1 /10.1

2'892.8

	10'400
	4.259
	0.7
	74.8 /70.5
	..
	9'413.1
	..

km2

Mio.

Jahre

US$

Source: World Bank's World Development Indicators 2013

Background information Iraq (BBC)
Background information Syria (BBC)
Background information Jordan (BBC)
Background information Libanon (BBC)

Local SDC contact address:

Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon (Amman)
Swiss Cooperation office Lebanon Beirut Phone: +961 1 739 741 Fax: +961 1 739 742 Email: beirut@sdc.net Swiss Regional Cooperation Office Jordan Swefiyeh, Salah Toqan st. No.7 P.O.Box 830544 Amman 11183
Phone	+962 6 585 6020
Fax	+962 6 581 5956
Email	amman@sdc.net
Website	www.swiss-cooperation.admin.ch/middleeast

Additional Information and Documents

Here, you will find more publications, links, documents and articles about Swiss development cooperation and humanitarian aid in this country.