Poor sanitary conditions pose a health risk. This is a major problem, particularly because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But even today, one third of the world's population has no adequate access to clean water. To help people living poverty protect themselves during the current pandemic, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is supporting hygiene awareness campaigns and the creation of more handwashing stations.

Discussions on the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on low-income countries have gained considerable momentum. Remittances from migrants and wider diaspora communities to their countries of origin are a key issue in this respect. Switzerland is therefore launching an appeal to keep remittance channels open and give the poorest communities continued access to these vital sources of income.

Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis talks to RTS in 'Pardonnez-moi' about the COVID-19 measures and the possible consequences of the pandemic. As he told the programme, many countries have thanked Switzerland for repatriating their citizens. It has also become clear that no country can tackle a crisis of this magnitude on its own. Here are some key quotes from the interview:

In an interview with "Schaffhauser Nachrichten", Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis talks about how Switzerland is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and the difficult path back to normality. He also said that various foreign policy issues needed to be assessed.

In September, heavy rainfall in Sudan flooded entire villages. Numerous people lost their lives. Swiss Humanitarian Aid is supporting the local population and has allocated one million Swiss francs to the Sudan Humanitarian Fund. The visit of the Sudanese Foreign Minister to Bern on 9 October underlines the good relations between the two countries in development cooperation and humanitarian aid.

Switzerland responded immediately with emergency aid following a fire, which devastated the refugee transit camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. It ended its emergency aid activities on Wednesday 30 September, having restored access to clean drinking water for 10,000 people. It will continue its support in the form of medium- and long-term assistance.

Manuel Bessler, Deputy Director General of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Delegate for Humanitarian Aid and Head of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit, visited the Lesbos camp on Tuesday 29 September. He was keen to see the situation on the ground 20 days on from the fire that destroyed the transit camp for refugees and migrants on the Greek island. He also met other international actors to discuss the future of Swiss aid. In an interview he explains how Switzerland will end its emergency relief operation but will continue to provide medium- and long-term assistance.

What's the right way to install solar panels? How can digitalisation help to bring Swiss know-how and expertise to different countries around the world? These are just some of the issues the specialists from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) are getting to grips with as part of their continuing training in Buix, in the canton of Jura. And through the use of words, images and videos they are able to reach far beyond the town limits of Buix.

In 2020, Switzerland celebrates a hundred years of its diplomatic presence in Iran. Ambassador Markus Leitner emphasises the good relations, multi-sectoral exchanges and trust between the two countries.

For weeks, the Swiss border with neighbouring countries has been closed. Now, developments in the containment of COVID-19 have made it possible to reopen the borders. Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis is underscoring the importance of this step for border regions with meetings in Chiasso, Kreuzlingen and Geneva. From 16 to 26 June, he will be meeting with representatives of Italy, Austria, Liechtenstein, Germany and France. "The crisis has shown how important open borders are," he said.

At Switzerland's initiative, the Human Rights Council has adopted a resolution on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of peaceful protests. In addition, Switzerland has submitted a resolution with partner states on the 15th anniversary of the Responsibility to Protect in order to renew the 2005 commitment of the international community to preventing the worst crimes.

Switzerland has ratified amendments to the Rome Statute designed to enable the International Criminal Court (ICC) to punish the use of biological weapons, blinding laser weapons and certain fragmentation weapons as war crimes. Ambassador Corinne Cicéron Bühler, Director of the Directorate of International Law, explains why Switzerland has deposited its instrument of ratification and why the work of the ICC is important – not just for people in war-torn areas.

In two interviews with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) and the Tribune de Genève (TdG), Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis talks about the significance of the UN in the 75 years since its foundation, about the role as well as the influence of Switzerland and how COVID-19 has changed international cooperation.

Twenty years ago, the Voluntary Principles were launched to work with mining, gas and oil companies and find a way of preventing human rights violations. The initiative fosters dialogue between governments, companies and NGOs. Switzerland is a member and in its role as chair, which lasts for one year and ends in March 2020, it has worked to strengthen this multi-stakeholder approach in the field, in accordance with its own Foreign Policy Strategy 2020–23. The results have been positive.

The FDFA advises caution and preparation when travelling during the summer holidays. Information on the regulations of the country of destination as well as on the rules for returning to Switzerland are prerequisites.

Summer is here! Switzerland offers many opportunities to spend the summer holidays, especially with children. However, if you still want to travel abroad with children this summer, it is important to find out about the entry requirements for the destination country before you leave. In the case of minor children travelling with only one parent or without a legal guardian, it is strongly recommended to draw up a declaration of consent.

In an interview with the Swiss newspaper Blick, Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, speaks about Switzerland's International Cooperation Strategy 2021–24, which was adopted by Parliament on 21 September 2020. Mr Cassis says that the new strategy is clearer, more measurable and more transparent, making it a success for the FDFA, and also lays out the two possible scenarios for Switzerland's EU policy depending on the outcome of the federal popular initiative 'For moderate immigration' (Limitation Initiative) on 27 September.

On 21 September 2020, the Swiss Parliament concluded its deliberations on the international cooperation strategy 2021–2024. In an interview following his recent visit to Federal Councillors Ignazio Cassis and Guy Parmelin, LI Yong, Director-General of UNIDO, also praised the strategy of Swiss development cooperation. The UN organisation is committed to sustainable industrial development.

Sustainable development cooperation is not a one-way street. Switzerland is working to strengthen African economies and helping to harness the dynamism of young people in Africa. Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis explains why in the September edition of the Swiss current affairs magazine Schweizer Monat.

During a media conference on Monday, 27 July 2020, Patricia Danzi reviews her first 100 days as director of the SDC. At the Humanitarian Aid depot in Wabern, she looks back on her arrival in the midst of a global pandemic and stresses the importance of support on site - a partnership that will continue to flourish even after the crisis.

The 75th session of the UN General Assembly opens on 15 September. The session opens with the High Level Week, which is taking place online for the first time. Switzerland has four priorities: addressing the consequences of COVID-19, UN reform, cybersecurity and digital governance, and International Geneva.

In line with its Sustainable Development Strategy, Switzerland builds and manages its properties around the world according to modern sustainability standards. The most recent example is the Swiss embassy in Zimbabwe's capital Harare. A new solar system supplies the embassy with energy and enables it to operate without one of the emergency power generators that are ubiquitous in Harare.

A well-functioning external network is key to providing assistance to Swiss nationals abroad, maintaining relations with the countries concerned and safeguarding Switzerland's interests. A crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic puts enormous pressure on Switzerland's external network. Flexibility, innovation and solidarity allow Switzerland's representations abroad to continue to work effectively. Swiss external network staff share their experiences.

As part of its foreign policy strategy (FPS 2020–23), Switzerland has organised an international workshop to develop its first ever strategy for sub-Saharan Africa. Hailing from more than 30 different African countries, the diplomatic representatives taking part in the workshop in Bern are putting the emphasis on long-term cooperation and the vast potential, which lies in the relations with African countries.

In a live chat hosted by the newspaper 20 Minuten, Federal Councillor Cassis answered readers' questions on the Limitation Initiative. Adoption of the initiative to limit immigration would damage Switzerland as a business location, he said.

Some 25 years on from the Srebrenica massacre, the question arises of what we have learnt from the past and how such atrocities can be prevented in the future. Examining our history is also important for Swiss domestic and foreign policy going forward. This article by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis was published in the NZZ on Saturday, 11 July 2020.

Claude Altermatt, the Swiss Ambassador in Minsk, talks about bilateral relations between Switzerland and Belarus and the importance of the opening of the Embassy.

At the beginning of every year, the Federal Council publishes the foreign policy report, in which it summarises and reviews the key foreign policy events of the past 12 months. 2019 saw polarising movements like Fridays for Future and the mass protests in Hong Kong, while the rivalry between major global players such as the United States, China and Russia intensified. How was Switzerland able to assert itself against this backdrop?

Over the past few years, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation has implemented projects with Islamic Relief Worldwide. Due to the fact that the NGO has been criticised for previous anti-Semitic statements, the FDFA has analysed the situation. The review concludes that the management of the organisation has reacted quickly and distanced itself from antisemitic statements. The joint projects have been operationally completed.

On 12 August 2020 the Federal Council passed a voluntary report on the implementation of international humanitarian law by Switzerland. In doing so, Switzerland wants to set an example and encourage other states to take similar initiatives. This would enhance the inter-state dialogue with the aim of better protecting the victims of armed conflicts worldwide.

Over the past decade, the war in Syria has resulted in one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. At the fourth Brussels conference on Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region co-chaired by the UN and the EU on 30 June, Switzerland announced that it would allocate CHF 61 million in 2020 for measures to assist the Syrian people. The international community pledged a total of USD 7.7 billion.

The promotion of human rights and respect for international law are essential pillars of Switzerland's foreign policy. Switzerland supports various projects and organisations to this end. Among these is the NGO Addameer, which advocates for Palestinian prisoners. As the NGO has been accused of having close ties with a terrorist organisation, the head of the FDFA, Ignazio Cassis, had the accusations investigated by the department in January 2020. The investigation was unable to confirm any of the allegations. Based on the information currently available to the FDFA, there are no grounds to terminate funding to Addameer.

Friday afternoon the French authorities informed the Swiss authorities that the Swiss hostage in Mali is dead. She was apparently killed by kidnappers of the Islamist terrorist organization Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslim (JNIM) about a month ago.

Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs – an Italian speaker from the canton of Ticino – met today with government representatives of the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. Mr Cassis and members of the Council of State of the canton of Ticino and representatives of the government of Graubünden discussed, among other matters, the current coronavirus situation, cross-border relations, relations with the EU, and the promotion of multilingualism and the language and culture of Switzerland's Italian-speaking population.

In an interview with the "Liechtensteiner Volksblatt" during an official visit to the Principality of Liechtenstein, Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, speaks about the special relationship between the two countries, Switzerland's policy on Europe and the important role played by small countries in multilateral organisations.

Four official languages are spoken in Switzerland. This multilingualism is a major asset for Switzerland and its people. Yet linguistic and cultural diversity cannot be taken for granted – it must be nurtured. This year's edition of Plurilingualism Week will once again raise awareness of this fact.