Hi, this is Michelle, back with our daily newsletter after experiencing some technical issues. The refugee forum held this week in Geneva arrives at a low point for the global asylum architecture.

We look beyond the nice speeches and promises and speak to two refugee leaders who have seen first-hand the reality on the ground.

After heated debates last week in Bern about possible further cuts to the Swiss aid budget, the UNDP’s Geneva head Agi Veres argues that aid is not just about solidarity – it’s strategic.

Michelle Langrand

18.12.2025

On our radar

Photo article

Afghan refugees recently returned from neighbouring Pakistan and Iran wait to receive Indian-donated food rations in Kabul, Afghanistan, on 18 May 2025. The number of Afghans deported from Iran, Pakistan and Turkey reached 170,000 in April and May alone. (Keystone/EPA/Samiullah Popal)

Refugee pact faces harsh reality check as refugee actors warn of system under strain. As governments meet in Geneva to review progress on the Global Compact on Refugees, two refugee leaders from Uganda and Turkey warn that host countries and local actors are shouldering most of the burden – at the risk of breaking.

Geneva Solutions (EN)

Here's what else is happening

⚖️Mariana Katzarova: a mandate for the Russian people. In this mini-documentary, the Bulgarian UN special rapporteur on Russia talks about how she began her career as a human rights activist and her current role exposing violations committed by Moscow.
Swissinfo (EN)
➡️Two more WHO officials cut from senior leadership move into other roles. Bruce Aylward, the former assistant director general for universal health coverage, and Ailan Li, formerly heading UHC/healthier populations have joined four others cut from WHO top ranks and reappointed to leading roles elsewhere.
Health Policy Watch (EN)
🇻🇪UN urges release of ‘arbitrarily detained’ Venezuelans. In his first update on the country, human rights chief Volker Türk also said authorities had increased reprisals against families of government opponents.
AFP via Arab News (EN)
🚫Ban Ki-moon calls for single seven-year term for next UN chief. At a Security Council debate last week, the former UN secretary general argued that two five-year tenures leave the officeholder overly dependent on the council’s permanent members for an extension.
The National (EN)

What they think

❝Multilateralism is Switzerland’s smartest investment in peace and prosperity. As the Swiss parliament considers a further reduction to the country’s aid budget next year, politicians should be mindful not to forget that multilateralism is an investment in peace, writes Agi Veres, director of the UNDP Office in Geneva.

Geneva Solutions (EN)

In case you missed it

Photo article

Kirsten Schuijt, director general of WWF International, in the organisation's offices in Gland. – © Karine Bauzin

WWF's Kirsten Schuijt: ‘We would be worse off without the Paris deal’. As a leading voice in defending the climate and biodiversity, WWF International will mark its 65th anniversary next year. Now back in Gland after attending Cop30 in Belém, its director general takes stock of international efforts to tackle global warming – and explains why she still remains optimistic.

Le Temps via Geneva Solutions (EN)

As US exit looms, WHO chief defends job cuts and scientific independence. Nearly a year after the United States announced it would leave the World Health Organization and donor support became scarce, the UN agency’s head said it had “no choice” but to slash jobs.

Geneva Solutions (EN)

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