Meet with Patricia Danzi: “What future for Swiss international cooperation?

The Geneva Press Club and the University of Geneva invite you to a debate with:

Patricia Danzi, Ambassador in charge of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)

Prof. Karl Blanchet, Director of the Center for Humanitarian Studies at the University of Geneva

Prof. Frédéric Esposito, Lecturer at the Global Studies Institute (GSI) of the University of Geneva, Director of the Bachelor in International Relations (BARI) and President of Human Rights Week.

Moderated by Isabelle Falconnier, Director of the Geneva Press Club, and Luisa Ballin, UN-accredited journalist.

In May 2020, Ambassador Patricia Danzi was appointed head of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The former elite athlete, who worked for 25 years at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), is the first woman to head the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) body responsible for international cooperation.

With a presence in 47 countries and some 1,870 employees in Berne and in the field, Swiss international cooperation faces many challenges at a time of federal budget cuts and global political and security instability. The Swiss Parliament is currently debating the international cooperation strategy for the next four years. How should Switzerland profile itself in terms of international cooperation? What is the added value of Switzerland’s international cooperation? What role can international cooperation play in Swiss foreign policy? What strategic choices, both humanitarian and political, does the SDC have to make over the coming decades?

Patricia Danzi will be in discussion with Karl Blanchet, Director of the Centre for Humanitarian Action at the University of Geneva. Karl Blanchet has extensive experience of the humanitarian world, both as a field worker and researcher, and of the workings of international and non-governmental organizations. Appointed full professor in the Department of Community Health and Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine in December 2019, he will at the same time take over the direction of the Centre d’enseignement et de recherche en action humanitaire (CERAH), a joint center of the UNIGE and the IEHEID.

Poverty reduction, sustainable development and the promotion of human rights and peace are the “raison d’être” of Swiss international cooperation. Saving lives and guaranteeing access to basic services; contributing to sustainable economic growth; protecting the environment and combating climate change; and promoting peace, democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights are the four development objectives that underpin the SDC’s work.

Photo: ©Embassy of Switzerland in Bosnia and Herzegovina