Development Sweden
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developmentsweden.bsky.social
Development Sweden
@developmentsweden.bsky.social
A newsletter on Swedish development cooperation and policy.
developmentsweden.substack.com
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December 9, 2025 at 10:01 AM
Tilde Addenbrooke receives the Swedish government's Ukraine award.
Well-known volunteer Tilde Addenbrooke is one of the recipients of the government's award for Swedish volunteer efforts in Ukraine. The award also goes to Help Ukraine Gothenburg. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Development Sweden #73. Sweden abandons more and more ”difficult” countries where the human rights situation is particularly difficult.
Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Development Sweden #73. Outrage as Swedish aid to Myanmar is phased out

By June 2026, development aid will have been completely phased out. Instead, the money will go to Ukraine.
Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Women's rights defender Ana Ruth García from Honduras is awarded the Swedish 2025 Per Anger Prize for her work for women's and girls' rights. Through her organisation, Ecuménicas, she spreads knowledge about sexual and reproductive health. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
April 10, 2025 at 2:26 PM
The Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SAK) has had a tumultuous couple of years since the Taliban regime banned all Swedish activities in Afghanistan. But despite the ban, SAK will carry on its work. ”We continue to fight for the women of Afghanistan”. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
April 10, 2025 at 2:25 PM
International criticism of Rwanda is growing following the aggressive involvement in the war in the DRC, where large areas are now controlled by the Rwanda-funded rebel group M23. Sweden is now halting all new agreements with state actors in Rwanda. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
April 10, 2025 at 2:20 PM
On March 31, the UN revealed that Israel had executed fifteen aid workers, including from the Red Cross/Red Crescent. Despite this, reactions from world leaders are cautious – or even non-existent.
Read the reactions from Swedish government and the opposition at developmentsweden.substack.com/
April 4, 2025 at 8:07 AM
The closure of USAID has hit humanitarian work hard, not least the systems that support humanitarian operations. That is why Sweden is providing an additional SEK 100 million for, among other things, data collection on humanitarian needs. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
April 4, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Development Sweden #61. The Somali government has declared the head of Swedish Development Cooperation Anna Saleem Högberg persona non grata. The counsellor and deputy ambassador, who is now expelled, has reportedly smeared the Somali government. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
April 4, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Is it possible to spread knowledge in today’s Russia about historical and contemporary war crimes and human rights violations? Why is Putin so afraid of Russia’s history? Read the conversation with Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights organization Memorial at developmentsweden.substack.com
March 27, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Nordic countries are still the happiest in the world. Finland is number 1 and Sweden is number 4 according to the World Happiness Report 2025. But what makes a country happy? Is there a link between happiness and politics in a country? Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
March 27, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Development Sweden #60. What can we learn from 20 years in Afghanistan? For 20 years, Sweden invested enormous resources in both aid and military operations in Afghanistan. When the Taliban took over, most of it was swept away. What lessons can we learn? Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
March 27, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Development Sweden #59. What happens to those who must leave their jobs as civil society reduces its workforce? Also in this issue: The Swedish government will reduce aid to Mozambique. The UN criticizes Sweden in a review, concerning deportation cases. Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com/
March 20, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Development Sweden #58. Sweden is increasing its aid to Ukraine with over 1.4 billion SEK. This means that more than 14% of the 2025 aid budget will be allocated to the country, something that has likely never happened before in Sweden.

Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com/
March 13, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Ukrainian refugees must be given long-term security in Sweden. This issue also features a commentary on the World Bank’s poverty report and an interview with the Swedish Postcode Lottery about funding Swedish organizations in the field of development. Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com/
March 7, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Development Sweden #56. Fundraising efforts during Ramadan in Sweden were previously led almost exclusively by Muslim organizations. Now nearly ten different Swedish organizations are actively raising funds during the Muslim fasting month.

Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com
February 27, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Under pressure, both ForumCiv and the Swedish Mission Council (SMR) are now submitting applications in the form of consortia ahead of Sida’s deadline on February 28, 2025. Through this, they hope to secure support for future programs.

Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com
February 20, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Development Sweden #55. The selection process for the major civil society organizations is now entering its final stage. At the same time, the announcement of upcoming programs is awaited. Will Sida be able to complete everything on time?

Read more at: developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 20, 2025 at 1:39 PM
In January 2025, IFAD issued its second 900 million SEK bond with Swedish pension fund Kåpan and insurance company Skandia as the main investors. The bond finances sustainable growth and rural development in developing countries.
Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com
February 13, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Sweden is providing an additional 100 million SEK in energy support to Moldova. The aim is to help households most affected by Russia’s halt of gas supplies. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 13, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Development Sweden #54. How Swedish organisations are affected by the USAID crisis. Around the world, organisations are being forced to lay off staff and suspend operations. However, Swedish organisations seem to be coping relatively well. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 13, 2025 at 2:34 PM
USAID: Swedish company among those affected. USAID is one of the major funders of innovative approaches to global health. Now all work is paused and no one knows if it will continue. One of those affected is the Uppsala-based start-up Enaiblers. Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 6, 2025 at 1:48 PM
USAID crisis: ”Sweden must now increase aid”. The Swedish Green Party’s spokesperson on development policy, Janine Alm Ericson: ”The government must increase aid and seek alliances to counteract the worst consequences”.
Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 6, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Development Sweden #53. ”Communication with USAID is completely broken”. Sweden has a large number of co-operation projects with USAID. Sida and embassy staff receive no information whatsoever about what is happening.
Read more at developmentsweden.substack.com/
February 6, 2025 at 1:44 PM