Mini agencies abroad: small Swiss “laptop embassies” should flourish – News

Switzerland wants to strengthen its representations abroad: the FDFA is transferring 35 jobs from Bern to the world.

Around 170 embassies, consulates and small representations around the world: Switzerland has a comparatively dense network of representations abroad. The tight-knit foreign network has just proved its worth in the crisis, the Federal Council writes in its foreign policy report. However, some representations are “insufficiently sustainable in terms of personnel”.

Therefore, the federal government is now responding with an expansion. At the request of Radio SRF, the Federal Department of Foreign Relations (FDFA) wrote: “The plan is to move 35 posts from FDFA headquarters to the external network over the next four years.” For comparison: a total of around 6,000 employees work at EDA headquarters and around the world.

Faster deployment in crisis situations

The FDFA writes that the benefits of the Swiss external network have just become apparent in the crown pandemic: Last spring, overseas representations helped repatriate more than 7,000 people from Switzerland abroad. It was the largest take-back campaign in Swiss history.

But the Swiss representations have also proved their worth in providing emergency humanitarian aid in developing countries, where the consequences of the pandemic are most severe. According to the Federal Council’s foreign policy strategy, representations in “difficult contexts”, that is, in countries marked by conflict and violence, should benefit from job relocation.

On the other hand, according to the FDFA, small representations should also be selectively increased: the so-called “laptop embassies”, in which sometimes only one ambassador works with a few local employees. “These are small, very small agencies that have very few relocatable staff. They must be able to continue to function, even if a crisis like the current pandemic continues, ”writes the FDFA.

Once criticized for financial control

Here’s a U-turn: the FDFA originally wanted to save money with these very small agencies. However, two years ago, the fact that representations had been kept to a minimum drew criticism from the Swiss Federal Audit Office: this means that resources would only be widely distributed without significant impact being achieved. Small representations lack profile and visibility.

The chair of the Foreign Policy Commission (APK), Liberal Green National Councilor Tiana Angelina Moser, welcomes the fact that one or another small representation can now be improved, even if the positions at the Bern FDFA headquarters are disappearing : “I am in favor of strengthening the Swiss external network, because I am convinced that this is very important for the globally oriented Switzerland.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean a weakening of the headquarters, according to Moser. “It will be up to the Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss how a win-win situation can be guaranteed.” The FDFA leaves open which representations will be strengthened in which countries.

Interview with Moser: “Realignment makes sense”

Legend:

Tiana Angelina Moser (GLP / ZH), President of the APK, welcomes the move abroad.

Keystone / Files

SRF News: The FDFA would like to move 35 positions from headquarters to overseas representations, a good idea?

Tiana Angelina Moser: I am very much in favor of the federal government striving for a committed foreign policy, and therefore would also like to strengthen the external network. It makes sense to locate diplomatic staff accordingly. Then we will discuss what that means in concrete terms for the headquarters in Bern.

The FDFA wanted to implement savings targets with the smallest representations. Isn’t it empowering to get away from it?

It is a realignment to the extent that the external network must be explicitly strengthened and the micro-agencies are now improved, which means that there are fewer micro-agencies. That makes sense. I also read this, to some extent, as a personal consequence of the Federal Council’s Foreign Policy Strategy 2020-2023: This explicitly foresees a presence in new and sometimes crisis-prone regions.

What representations in which countries do you think should be strengthened?

Strengthening should be based on the foreign policy strategy. This clearly puts a certain focus on relations with European countries; But it also foresees a strengthening of the MENA region, that is, the Near and Middle East and North Africa. I guess these regions will focus accordingly.