News

In view of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Sudan, the Federal Council decided at its meeting on 19 November 2025 to request an urgent supplementary credit of CHF 50 million from Parliament to alleviate the humanitarian suffering in Sudan and the surrounding region. Food, drinking water and medicines are needed for the people of Sudan, whose situation has deteriorated further since the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured the town of El Fasher. The conflict between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF has led to what is currently the worst humanitarian disaster in the world. Switzerland has provided humanitarian aid totalling CHF 140 million since the outbreak of the conflict in 2023.

Digital crime in Switzerland has more than doubled in recent years. In response to Postulate 22.3457, which was submitted by National Council member Stefan Müller-Altermatt, the Federal Council examined the coordination between the relevant authorities, the police and the domain registry operators with regard to tackling scam websites. This assessment was carried out as part of a report on deactivating scam websites and coordinating the national response to online scams. Approved by the Federal Council at its 19 November meeting, the report concludes that, although the existing legal instruments are fundamentally effective, they must be applied more consistently.

On 19 November, the Federal Council amended the Ordinance on Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for Foreign Scholars and Artists, thereby increasing monthly scholarship contributions to CHF 2,450 starting from 1 January 2026 . This ensures that this funding instrument remains attractive for promising foreign students and researchers and continues to strengthen international exchange at Swiss universities. To implement this change without impacting costs, the number of scholarships available will be reduced. In addition, postdoctoral scholarships will no longer be awarded from the 2027/28 academic year.

The latest semi-annual report from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) shows that the centre continued to receive large numbers of reports in the first six months of 2025. The number of reports concerning fraud – over half of the total – also remains high. There has been a marked increase in reports of online investment advertising scams. Cybercriminals often misuse celebrities as decoys to gain the trust of potential victims. The semi-annual report also focuses on various targeted phishing campaigns aimed at bank customers, the ongoing ransomware threat and hacktivism at major events such as the WEF and the Eurovision Song Contest.

At the invitation of the vice-president of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Italy, Antonio Tajani, Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, the head of the FDFA, represented Switzerland at the first Conference on the Italian Language in Rome on 18 November 2025. The event brought together countries and communities linked by the Italian language and saw the adoption of the founding declaration of the Community of Italian Speakers. The conference was also an opportunity for Mr Cassis to meet ministers from various countries, including Romania, Kosovo, San Marino, Slovenia and Somalia as well as the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi.

Address by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) on the occasion of the first international Conference on the Italian Languages in Rom – Check against delivery

The inaugural ministerial meeting of the Future of Investment and Trade Partnership (FIT Partnership) convened in Singapore on 18 November 2025. Switzerland participated in the meeting alongside 15 other states. The FIT Partnership unites small and medium-sized economies committed to open and rules-based global trade.

The head of the FDFA will visit Central and Eastern Africa from 20 to 21 November 2025. In Kigali, Mr Cassis will take part in the 46th session of the Francophonie Ministerial Conference, before inaugurating the new Swiss embassy in the city and meeting his Rwandan counterpart. He will then travel to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for talks with the Congolese minister of foreign affairs. Mr Cassis' visit to the DRC will focus on the conflict in the east of the country and Switzerland's efforts to promote peace, stability and development in the region.

When the forever chemicals known as PFAS enter the environment, they remain there for generations and can harm humans and nature. Despite increasing bans, many PFAS are still in circulation – including on Swiss ski slopes and cross-country trails, where the toxins enter the environment through abrasion from ski wax. Empa researchers have, in connection with a graduation project, detected elevated PFAS concentrations in snow samples from the Engadin region – and are urging cross-country skiers to switch to fluorine-free waxes.

In 2025, Swiss agriculture is expected to generate a gross value added of CHF 5 billion, an increase of 9.6% compared with the previous year. Output rose by 4.1%, bolstered by good harvests and favourable overall market conditions for livestock production. Production costs remained stable. These initial estimates for the current year are based on the Economic Accounts for Agriculture compiled by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

In 2024, companies involved in commodity trading generated estimated value added of CHF 19.2 billion, accounting for 2.3% of Switzerland's total value added – a figure comparable to its gross domestic product (GDP). The cantons of Geneva and Zug are the main regional centres for this activity. These are some of the results from the new monetary statistics on commodity traders published by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

The Federal Finance Administration (FFA) plans to issue bonds with a face value of CHF 4.5 billion in 2026. Taking account of bonds maturing in 2026, the volume of Confederation bonds outstanding will increase by CHF 1 billion overall. The volume of outstanding money market debt register claims will be kept in a range between CHF 6 billion and CHF 14 billion. Bond auctions take place monthly, except in August, while money market debt register claims are auctioned on a weekly basis. Auctions will now last only 30 minutes, instead of the previous 1.5 hours.