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Switzerland is not on course for a sustainable world. That's the verdict from Platform Agenda 2030 in its new report, out today. It is calling upon the Federal Council to show more leadership in the transformation needed.

No sooner had the announcement on giving up fossil fuels been made, than Switzerland's Glencore International became the sole owner of Latin America's biggest open pit coal mine. It is even taking the Colombian State to court.

The Taliban took power in Afghanistan last August. Life is dominated by hunger, cold and despair. But there is also resistance and faint hope, as recounted by an Afghan who lives in Kabul and works for an international non-governmental organisation.

At the last annual meeting with the development organisations, Federal President Ignazio Cassis laid out his three most important quality criteria for Switzerland's international cooperation, namely, reliability, trust and predictability… Bingo!

Andreas Missbach has been the new Director of Alliance Sud since January. The social scientist and avid mountain hiker has no fear of contact with the market and relishes attacks from political adversaries.

The corona pandemic is leading to a global debt crisis. Poor countries of the South are the ones bearing the brunt of it. Despite some multilateral efforts at debt relief over the past two years, the situation is growing steadily worse.

Switzerland's many negative spillovers include environmental pollution, arms exports and tax evasion – and they are undermining international efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

There is a new SECO initiative designed to mobilise private capital for developing countries. It raises several questions about governance and development impacts.

New members, a new Director and a new Presidency – all signal the dawn of a new era in the 50-year history of Alliance Sud. In the light of growing inequality and a civil society that is coming under ever greater pressure around the world, it is more crucial than ever to have a powerful voice in development policy in Switzerland.