Sweden
UNICEF public sector partner
Sweden is one of the most important advocates for UNICEF’s normative work, and a strong partner in addressing the complex global concerns impacting children and young people. As an unwavering ally, and as a critical friend to UNICEF, Sweden stands with us to strengthen the human-rights based approach in our Strategic Plan and our work on the ground. Sweden’s generous contributions help deliver results for millions of children every year through UNICEF's development and humanitarian programmes across the globe.
As a donor, Sweden is a benchmark for strong unrestricted and flexible partnership. As a top-5 government donor to UNICEF’s core resources since 2014 Sweden provides UNICEF the greatest predictability, flexibility, and efficiency. Core funding allows UNICEF to achieve results at scale and to act immediately and to scale up life-saving response at the onset of a crisis. In Ukraine for example, core funding enabled our life-saving speed and scale to begin to reach hundreds of thousands of children and their families within the first month of the war.
Sweden is also the second-largest donor to thematic funding. In terms of thematic priorities, Child Protection, WASH, Education, and Innovation, as well as support to whole Country Programmes, are hallmarks of the Sweden-UNICEF partnership.
Sweden's multiyear commitment of approximately $270 million for 2022-2025 reflects its trust in UNICEF’s extensive, dual mandate and operational effectiveness, valuing UNICEF's integral role in coordinating UN initiatives.
In humanitarian action, Sweden is consistently among UNICEF's top-10 donors and leads with commitment, responsiveness, and flexibility. In times of unprecedented crises, Sweden’s leadership on efficient and effective humanitarian action, joint advocacy, and flexible support, including to ‘forgotten’ and underfunded crises, illustrates the breadth and depth of Sweden’s humanitarian engagement.
UNICEF’s primary counterparts in Sweden include the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). They offer not only financial assistance, but also thought leadership and instrumental policy direction, strengthening UNICEF's core initiatives. Moreover, Sweden's Office of Innovation, now hosted in Stockholm, acts as a catalyst in advancing technology and creative solutions to address the most pressing issues faced by children, including in collaboration with private sector actors.
Through unwavering support and policy goals, UNICEF and Sweden continue to demonstrate the power of a shared-value partnership to shape a more equitable and inclusive world for children everywhere.
2022 contributions to UNICEF
Regular Resources: US$63 million
Other Resources (regular): US$87 million
Other Resources (emergency): US$72 million
Total: US$222 million