NCCR North-South Dialogue No. 30

by Bernd Steimann

Bern, NCCR North-South 2011

In 2000, along with 188 other national governments, Switzerland signed the United Nation‘s Millennium Declaration and committed to working towards achievement of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Despite their comprehensive character, however, the MDGs have received only limited attention since then and have remained widely unknown among the Swiss public. Based on a review of official reports, an analysis of parliamentarian debates over the last ten years, and interviews with government and NGO representatives, this report examines how the MDGs – particularly MDG-1 (poverty reduction) – have influenced Switzerland‘s Official Development Assistance (ODA), and what role they played in public and political debates regarding Switzerland‘s engagement for global poverty alleviation.

Steimann B. 2011. Millennium Development Goal 1 (Poverty Reduction) and the Swiss Debate on Development Assistance. NCCR North-South Dialogue 30 (Working Paper, Special Research Project 4 - Beyond the MDGs). Bern and Zurich, Switzerland: NCCR North-South.

Language
English

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