Swiss Review 4/2020

Swiss Review / July 2020 / No.4 29 unwilling to return. Our intention is to provide them with the best possi- ble protection on the ground. Demand for welfare aid and other consular ser- vices has increased – unsurprising given that, one, over 770,000 Swiss live abroad and, two, the Swiss nor- mally take over 16million trips abroad every year. Some of the reasons for this additional demand include inade- quate healthcare, inadequate social welfare systems, and volatile security situations in the country of residence. Dual nationals – victims of their status Certain nations have prohibited their citizens from travelling abroad dur- ing the pandemic. In some countries, this has resulted in dual nationals be- ing unable to return home. This addi- tional issue has posed quite a chal- lenge in terms of providing consular protection. Glimpse of the future The crisis hit and continues to hit Switzerland just as hard as the rest of the world. We have never experi- enced anything of this enormity. Tried-and-tested contingency plans only go so far in times like these. Despite the alarming nature of what © Beatrix Hagmann Consular services anywhere, conveniently on your mobile devices Manila (2020) www.fdfa.admin.ch was unfolding, the FDFAmanaged to respond quickly in the interests of Switzerland and its citizens, thanks not least to modern technology and new communication methods – ele- ments of the ‘virtual digital diplo- macy’ that is steadily gaining traction and will doubtless play a key role in the FDFA’s future work. Broad network Looking ahead, the FDFA will care- fully examine how digitalisation, current working practices, changes in international mobility, and other fac- tors are shaping tomorrow’s world – and how consular services need to be developed accordingly. What we al- ready know is that our broad network of Swiss representations more than proved its worth. We must safeguard this infrastructure. Swiss passengers boarding a flight from Lima to Zurich. Switzerland organ- ised 35 repatriation flights in total. Photo: FDFA Ambassador Johannes Matyassy is the director of the Consular Directorate (CD) at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA)