Sida is an administrative authority that works on behalf of the Government and the Parliament. Sida's new operational strategy (2024 – 2026) reflects the Government's reform agenda, Development Assistance for a new era - freedom, empowerment and sustainable growth (December 2023), and the Strategy for Sweden's trade, investment and global competitiveness (November 2023). Changes in the neighbourhood area, global development and new needs all require adaptation of Sida's operations.
Coherent ways of working for better results
Clarity, efficiency, transparency and results are cornerstones of Sida's new organisation and working methods. The new organisation's ability to prioritise and adapt operations to a changing world and fragile contexts must be robust over time.
This has been the starting point in the design of Sida's new organisation. With coherent working methods, Sida can further strengthen its ability to achieve results in partner countries and regions. It will also strengthen the impact of Swedish development cooperation, through Sida.
Jakob Granit, Director General of Sida
- Overall, the new organization and new working methods, will strengthening One Sida by working according to coherent processes. This will ensure the capability of the organisation to adapt to the assignment and steering that the agency receives. We do this in order maximise impact and results for people living in poverty and oppression," says Jakob Granit, Director General.”
Sida continues to further develop a cohesive model for performance management, monitoring and reporting. Furthermore, several measures have been identified to increase transparency in Sida's operations by improving the information available on openaid.se. This includes information on the forwarding of funds through Sida's partners in civil society. This will enable improved transparency about the implementation and results of the development assistance.
Jakob Granit, Director General of Sida
Increased geographical focus and in-depth analyses
Sida is steered by bilateral, regional and thematic strategies decided by the Government. In one and the same partner country, there may therefore be development projects that are financed from several strategies. Sida's operational activities have largely been organised on the basis of the strategies. To increase efficiency and the conditions for achieving synergies between strategies, Sida's activities in the new organisation will have an even clearer geographical focus.
This will be achieved by strengthening the geographical teams and developing ways of working to take care of governance from different strategies. For example, onwards the agency will conduct country and regional analyses regarding Sida's overall development cooperation and humanitarian aid in countries and regions. Based on these analyses, Sida will design development offers to partners and countries. There will be country and regional managers who will be tasked with keeping the agency's development offer together in the different geographies. It shall be easier to cooperate with Sida.
Focus on the synergies between aid and trade
The Governments’ reform agenda emphasises synergies between aid and trade. Sida therefore collaborates with other Swedish authorities and state-owned companies in Team Sweden, which in the promotion and investment work consists of Sida, Business Sweden, Swedfund, the Swedish Export Credit Agency and the Swedish Export Credit Corporation. The National Board of Trade and the Swedish Institute participate with central assignments in Team Sweden, as do many other Swedish government agencies. In this collaboration, Sida continues to clarify Sida's contribution and added value to Team Sweden. In Sida's new organisation, Sida's work with trade, the private sector and financial instruments is brought together in one department.
New departments for better impact
In the new organisation, units that work with the management of programmes and projects in partner countries, regions and globally will belong to operational departments.
Sida's thematic expertise, with the task of supporting operations, is gathered in support departments. Administrative functions are consolidated into another. Sida continues its systematic work to counteract corruption in its operations.
To ensure coherence in working methods and pursue increased impact of development cooperation in Sweden's partner countries and regions, three geographical operational departments are established; Europe, Africa, as well as Latin America, the Middle East and Asia. In addition, operational departments for global programmes and humanitarian aid will be established.
Sida's departments:
Operational departments
Support departments
Financial instruments
For many years, Sida has issued guarantees that allow banks and other investors, for example, to dare to invest money in small and medium-sized companies in developing countries. Companies and entrepreneurs will thus have easier access to capital. Guarantees facilitate and enable investments that contribute to sustainable economic development, poverty reduction and the global goals in Agenda 2030. Internationally, Sweden has a prominent role in providing guarantees for development through Sida's experience. The average leverage ratio in Sida’s guarantee portfolio is currently 1:60, meaning that for every SEK spent, of grant funding (ODA) for the guarantee, an amount of SEK 60 is mobilized in additional funding. Sida's guarantees and Sida's grant aid complement each other with the aim of contributing to lasting systemic changes in partner countries. Guarantees continue to be an innovative financial instrument that mobilises significant volumes of additional capital for development. A necessary addition as the world's total aid is insufficient in relation to the global development needs and challenges.
Sub-strategies guide the work
Sida has currently developed four internal sub-strategies for new prioritised thematic areas that will guide the work on the private sector, migration, digital transformation and communication.
The priorities are reflected in the establishment of new departments for digital transformation and security, trade, private sector and financial instruments and a department for results.
- Sida is building a robust organisation with coherent systems for One Sida that responds to changes in steering in a changing world and in partner countries. The new organisation is an important step. We are now continuing the work of designing the new coherent working methods," says Jakob Granit, Director-General.”