Swiss maintain aid commitment to Syria

Following ten years of conflict in the region, aid to the civilian population in Syria and its neighbouring countries remains crucial. Keystone / Obs/caritas Schweiz/alexandra We

Switzerland is providing another CHF60 million ($63.8 million) this year for humanitarian aid to the population in Syria and its neighbouring countries.

The pledge was made at a United Nations conference, held in Brussels on Tuesday, according to the Swiss foreign ministryExternal link.

The high-level event aims to maintain the international community’s support to address the need of the population in the crisis-ridden region.

Johannes Matyassy, the foreign ministry representative at the online conference, also confirmed Switzerland’s commitment to help facilitate a sustainable political solution in Syria.

It is the third time in a row that Switzerland has contributed CHF60 million at the Brussels conference.

In total, international donors pledged CHF6 billion to keep Syrians fleeing a decade of civil war from starving, according to the European UnionExternal link which co-hosted the conference.

However, critics point out that the funds are short of a $10 billion goal as governments struggle with weakened economies in the midst of the Covid pandemic.

Over the past ten years, Switzerland has contributed about CHF522 million to help address the needs of the population in the region. It is the country’s largest long-term humanitarian effort, the foreign ministry said.