Humanitarian Aid supports flood victims in Sudan
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.
The East African country was hit by violent floods last September causing dozens of deaths. © Keystone
For several decades, Swiss Humanitarian Aid has been active in various regions of Sudan. The aim is to save lives and protect victims of armed conflicts and natural disasters. Following the devastating floods in September, Switzerland is sending additional aid to support the local population.
In the floods a few weeks ago, many people lost their lives. Swiss Humanitarian Aid announced an additional contribution of CHF 1 million to the Sudan Humanitarian Fund, a pooled fund managed by the United Nations which provides funding for emergency operations. In addition, two specialists from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit have been deployed to the region to provide assistance in the area of water and sanitation.
Close relations between Switzerland and Sudan: Meeting in Bern
The meeting in Bern with Sudanese Foreign Minister Omer Gamareldin Ismail underlines the important cooperation between the two countries. Krystyna Marty, State Secretary of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), received the Sudanese Foreign Minister at the Federal Palace. Various topics were discussed at the meeting, which was also attended by SDC Director Patricia Danzi and other representatives of the Federal Administration.
This was his second visit to Bern in the last two weeks. At the meeting, Ms Marty welcomed the signing of the Juba peace agreement of 3 October, affirmed Switzerland's support for the political transition process under way in Sudan, and discussed possible future cooperation in the areas of development cooperation and humanitarian aid, peace policy and migration.
Regarding the country's economic situation, she welcomed Sudan's efforts to introduce reforms aimed at finding a solution to its debt, as well as the authorities' ambitions to resume relations with the international financial institutions to this end.
The SDC has been active on the ground in Sudan since 1994. Prior to this disaster, it had an annual budget of CHF 9.3 million (2020) for its activities in Sudan. This new contribution brings the total amount to CHF 10.3 million.
Swiss Humanitarian Aid
Swiss Humanitarian Aid acts before, during and after conflicts, crises and natural disasters to serve the interests of people in need. It focuses on the reconstruction and rehabilitation of affected areas, disaster risk reduction, the protection of vulnerable people and emergency relief efforts. Swiss Humanitarian Aid is part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) within the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).
