Reform of aid

The plan explicitly says Sweden should increase aid and that global inequality must be significantly reduced. It also requires that aid is given without self-interested reservations, which speaks against a reform agenda focused on trade and regional areas. Holding firm to the one-percent target and strengthening democracy support is thus directly in line with the plan.

• increased aiddecisive»Sverige ska öka biståndet, stärka FN och skriva under kärnvapenkonventionen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden should increase aid, strengthen the UN and sign the nuclear weapons convention.”
• aid without self-interested reservations»Internationellt bistånd ska ges till fattiga länder utan egennyttiga« (party programme ↗)“International aid shall be given to poor countries without self-interested”
• reduce global inequality»I en rättvis värld måste den globala ojämlikheten kraftigt minskas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“In a just world, global inequality must be significantly reduced.”
• support for democratization from below»Vi stödjer alltid demokratisering som växer« (party programme ↗)“We always support democratization that grows”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The party programme explicitly establishes that Swedish aid shall correspond to at least one percent of gross national income, which is exactly what the counter-proposal requires. The programme also wants development cooperation to support the emergence of democratic institutions and a strong civil society, which covers the requirement for increased democracy support. The election manifesto continues the same line with increased climate aid and global solidarity.

• the one-percent target in aiddecisive»Det svenska biståndet ska motsvara minst en procent av bruttonationalinkomsten.« (party programme ↗)“Swedish aid shall correspond to at least one percent of gross national income.”
• democracy support in aid»Utvecklingssamarbetet ska bygga på utvecklingsländernas egna resurser och stödja« (party programme ↗)“Development cooperation shall be based on developing countries' own resources and support”
• increased aid»Därför vill vi dubblera klimatbiståndet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore we want to double climate aid.”
• reduced global poverty»Arbetet för att minska fattigdomen måste fortsätta.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Work to reduce poverty must continue.”

The plan explicitly requires that more than 1 percent of gross national income continue to go to aid and that aid not be conditioned on Sweden's domestic political interests. This is exactly what the counter-proposal seeks when it wants to stick to the one-percent target and warns against a one-sided focus on the nearby region. The plan furthermore wants development cooperation to build democratic societies and supports organizations working for democracy and human rights.

• the one-percent target for aiddecisive»att mer än 1 procent av Sveriges bruttonationalinkomst fortsatt ska gå till bistånd, att biståndet ska styras av principer om effektivitet och fattigdomsbekämpning och inte villkoras mot Sveriges inrikespolitiska intressen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“that more than 1 percent of Sweden's gross national income continue to go to aid, that aid shall be governed by principles of effectiveness and poverty reduction and not be conditioned on Sweden's domestic political interests.”
• aid tied to GNI»Därför är det rimligt att minst en procent av Sveriges bruttonationalinkomst, BNI, avsätts till internationellt bistånd.« (party programme ↗)“Therefore it is reasonable that at least one percent of Sweden's gross national income, GNI, be allocated to international aid.”
• democracy-building in aid»att utvecklingssamarbetet ska bidra till att bekämpa fattigdom, förebygga och hantera klimatförändringarna, bevara och skapa fred, förebygga konflikter, bygga upp demokratiska samhällen och motverka korruption.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“that development cooperation shall contribute to combating poverty, preventing and managing climate change, preserving and creating peace, preventing conflicts, building democratic societies and combating corruption.”
• support for democracy actors»Organisationer som arbetar för demokrati, mänskliga rättigheter, jämställdhet och hållbar utveckling bör ges stöd genom svenskt utvecklingssamarbete.« (party programme ↗)“Organizations working for democracy, human rights, equality and sustainable development should be given support through Swedish development cooperation.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The plan establishes that the world's rich countries must contribute to helping developing countries more rapidly reach sustainable development and that aid and trade agreements bind countries closer together. The party stands in a tradition of global justice and democratisation, which bears the counter-proposal's demand for increased democracy support to parties, popular movements, and institutions. A percentage target of 1 per cent of GDP is not explicitly mentioned, but the plan's ambition level on aid speaks against a phase-down and against an exclusively regional focus.

• rich countries' aid responsibilitydecisive»Världens rika länder måste bidra till att utvecklingsländer snabbare kan nå en hållbar utveckling.« (party programme ↗)“The world's rich countries must contribute to helping developing countries more rapidly achieve sustainable development.”
• global justice and democratisation»i en tradition av global rättvisa« (party programme ↗)“in a tradition of global justice”
• aid as cooperation tool»handelsavtal och bistånd, kan knyta länder närmare varandra« (party programme ↗)“aid and trade agreements can bind countries closer together”
• support for liberal democracy»Runtom i världen pågår en kamp mellan anhängare av den liberala demokratin och auktoritära krafter. Den måste vi vinna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Around the world, a struggle is taking place between advocates of liberal democracy and authoritarian forces. We must win it.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto establishes that Swedish aid shall reach one percent of GNI, which is exactly what the counter-proposal demands and what the committee's decoupling from GNI abandons. The plan also makes democracy the overarching goal of development aid and prioritizes support to democratizing forces and institution-building. The commitment that Sweden shall support democracy forces in the world's dictatorships speaks against too narrow a focus on the neighbouring region.

• one percent target in aiddecisive»Därför vill vi att det svenska biståndet ska uppnå till en procent av BNI.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore we want Swedish aid to reach one percent of GNI.”
• democracy as aid goal»Demokrati ska vara det övergripande målet för utvecklingsbiståndet.« (party programme ↗)“Democracy shall be the overarching goal for development aid.”
• prioritized democracy support»Därför ska bistånd till demokratiserande krafter, institutionsbyggande, korruptionsbekämpning och rättsstatliga strukturer samt jämställdhet och sexuell och reproduktiv hälsa och rättigheter samt hbtqi-personers rättigheter prioriteras.« (party programme ↗)“Therefore, aid to democratizing forces, institution-building, anti-corruption and rule-of-law structures, and gender equality and sexual and reproductive health and rights and LGBTQI persons' rights shall be prioritized.”
• global, not just neighbouring region»Sverige ska vara en röst för global frihet och ge stöd åt de modiga människor som verkar för demokratisering av världens återstående diktaturer.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden shall be a voice for global freedom and provide support to brave people working for democratization of the world's remaining dictatorships.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The party programme explicitly states that Sweden should give at least one per cent of GNI in international aid and that the level should apply in both low and high economic conditions. That is precisely the principle the counter-proposal wants to adhere to, and it speaks against decoupling the aid budget from GNI. The plan also highlights democracy and rights support as an effective way to stabilize weak new democracies.

• one per cent of GNI for aiddecisive»Sverige bör ge minst en procent av BNI i internationellt bistånd.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden should give at least one per cent of GNI in international aid.”
• stable aid level across economic cycles»en biståndsnivå som gäller såväl i låg- som högkonjunktur.« (party programme ↗)“an aid level that applies in both low and high economic conditions.”
• democracy support in aid»Stöd till mänskliga rättigheter och demokrati kan effektivt bidra till att stabilisera nyblivna men ännu svaga demokratier.« (party programme ↗)“Support for human rights and democracy can effectively contribute to stabilizing newly established but still weak democracies.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The plan explicitly takes a stance against what the counter-proposal demands: the one-percent target shall be abolished and replaced with a four-year budget framework, and the size of aid shall be based on needs assessment and results instead of a payout target. The demand to stick to 1 percent of GNI thus directly contradicts the plan. The fact that the plan wants to prioritize democracy and human rights does not change that conclusion.

• abolished one-percent targetdecisive»Avskaffa enprocentmålet och ersätta det med en fyraårig budgetram för biståndet som skapar förutsägbarhet och resultatfokus« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Abolish the one-percent target and replace it with a four-year budget framework for aid that creates predictability and results focus”
• results before payout targets»Biståndets storlek ska bygga på en bedömning av vilken budget som är rimlig när biståndet ställs mot andra behov, samt utifrån vilka resultat som bedöms kunna uppnås, snarare än på ett utbetalningsmål.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The size of aid shall be based on an assessment of what budget is reasonable when aid is weighed against other needs, and on what results are assessed to be achievable, rather than on a payout target.”
• focused aid»Fokusera det svenska biståndet till de länder, organisationer och tematiska områden där det gör störst nytta« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Focus Swedish aid on the countries, organizations, and thematic areas where it makes the greatest difference”
• democracy support prioritized»Prioritera insatser som stödjer arbetet för demokrati och mänskliga rättigheter« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Prioritize efforts that support work for democracy and human rights”

The plan demands that international aid be dramatically reduced and that aid be assessed by the effect it achieves rather than by how much money is allocated to the field. This is incompatible with the counter-proposal's demand to maintain the one per cent target. The plan also wishes to focus aid on humanitarian disaster assistance and condition bilateral aid with recipient cooperation, rather than broaden democracy support.

• dramatically reduced aiddecisive»Överlag måste det internationella biståndet kraftigt minska och insatserna effektiviseras.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Overall, international aid must be dramatically reduced and initiatives made more efficient.”
• effect before percentage target»Biståndet ska som alla andra budgetposter värderas utifrån den effekt det får och inte hur mycket pengar som läggs på området.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Aid should, like all other budget posts, be assessed based on the effect it achieves and not on how much money is allocated to the field.”
• Swedish welfare before aid»Minska svenskt bistånd till förmån för svensk välfärd och trygghet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Reduce Swedish aid in favour of Swedish welfare and security”
• conditioned aid»Som regel villkora bilateralt bistånd med avtal om mottagandesamverkan« (2022 manifesto ↗)“As a rule condition bilateral aid with agreements on recipient cooperation”