Politics · Switzerland · 3 hrs ago
Audit questions impact of Switzerland’s 100 million-franc image campaign
Switzerland spends an estimated 100 million francs a year on efforts to promote its image abroad.
The work involves several federal bodies, including Presence Switzerland, which organises events and supports projects overseas.
A federal audit says the impact is unclear because the work lacks clear goals and is not systematically measured.
The audit found that 70% of the government bodies involved had not changed their activities despite new strategies.
It also said the 2021–2024 strategy failed to make Switzerland widely seen abroad as a leading country for innovation, despite its top ranking in an innovation index.
The audit called for an action plan and criticised the administrative burden of small projects; the Foreign Affairs Department accepted all its recommendations.
Switzerland’s Federal Audit Office says the impact of the country’s image work abroad is unclear, despite estimated annual spending of about 100 million francs.
The audit criticised missing concrete goals and called for an action plan.
It said the 2021–2024 strategy failed to achieve its intended effect on perceptions of Switzerland as an innovation leader.
The Swiss foreign ministry accepted all the audit’s recommendations but said only parts of the work were examined.
- Who
- Switzerland’s Federal Audit Office reviewed the work, which involves several federal bodies, including Presence Switzerland.
- What
- The audit questioned the effectiveness of Switzerland’s image work abroad and criticised missing goals and limited evaluation.
- When
- The report was published on 11 November 2026.
- Where
- The work aims to promote Switzerland’s image abroad.
- Why
- The federal government uses the work to promote Switzerland and help prevent possible image crises.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Switzerland’s strategy period included efforts to promote the country as an innovation leader, but the audit said the intended effect was not achieved.
The new strategy included reducing the risk of disinformation but, according to the audit, specified no concrete measures.
20 Minuten reported on the Federal Audit Office’s findings about Switzerland’s image work abroad.
- Estimated annual spending
- About 100 million francs
- Audit focus
- Presence Switzerland
- Previous strategy period
- 2021–2024
- Current strategy period
- 2025–2028
- Strategy finding
- 70% of involved federal bodies said they had not changed activities despite new strategies
What people are saying
A good image could, for example, also make Switzerland a bigger target for disinformation campaigns.
It is problematic that successes are assumed even without systematic measurement of effectiveness.