On 8 April, the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Yuliia Svyrydenko, and the Delegate of the Swiss Federal Council for Ukraine, Ambassador Jacques Gerber, signed an agreement amending the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

This document formalises the decision of the Swiss Confederation to increase its support for the call for proposals for the reconstruction of Ukraine. The call involves Swiss companies already operating in Ukraine that can contribute to the country’s rebuilding efforts. According to both parties, the interest from businesses has been so significant that the funding has been doubled – from CHF 50 million to 100 million.

The signed agreement paves the way for new opportunities to implement joint projects under an intergovernmental initiative launched at the start of 2025. The allocated CHF 100 million form part of a broader Swiss aid programme for Ukraine, totalling CHF 1.5 billion for 2025–2028. Overall, Switzerland plans to invest CHF 5 billion in a 12-year support programme.

“The strong interest from Swiss businesses is a clear signal that our intergovernmental agreements are effective. The additional CHF 50 million will be directed towards projects in areas such as civilian protection, infrastructure reconstruction, municipal development, and the modernisation of public services. We are particularly keen to deepen cooperation in the fields of energy, transport, housing construction, water supply, healthcare, industrial engineering, and education,” emphasised First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko.

In turn, Ambassador Jacques Gerber highlighted that the decision to increase funding reflected the close and trusting collaboration between Ukraine and Switzerland.

The Delegate of the Swiss Federal Council for Ukraine, Ambassador Jacques Gerber, noted that he had visited Chernihiv the previous week and had witnessed the scale of destruction in Kharkiv the year before. He stated that Ukraine’s needs for recovery and reconstruction were immense, while pointing out that Swiss companies continued to operate in Ukraine despite all the challenges. He mentioned that they created jobs and paid taxes to the Ukrainian state budget, and also expressed their desire to contribute to the country’s rebuilding efforts. He added that increasing the funding for the initiative to CHF 100 million enabled the connection of Swiss expertise and experience with real local needs, thus supporting Ukraine’s recovery process.

The signing of the agreement marks a significant milestone in the development of bilateral economic relations between Ukraine and Switzerland, opening up new opportunities to attract investment into priority sectors of the Ukrainian economy.

Background

The Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs on the implementation of the call for proposals for the reconstruction of Ukraine in cooperation with Swiss companies was signed on 23 January 2025 during the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Switzerland is one of Ukraine’s key partners in the reconstruction process. In April 2024, the Swiss government announced a long-term support programme for Ukraine, totalling CHF 5 billion over 12 years.