The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) has received new instructions that will be effective from 15 May 2025.
Photo: Dawid Tkocz/Unsplash
The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) has received new instructions that will be effective from 15 May 2025. In brief, the new instructions give Sida a stronger explicit responsibility to interact with researchers and to rely on research findings to implement development cooperation. At the same time, the new instructions entail that the agency no longer has its own Scientific Council (vetenskapliga rådet). The Scientific Council was among other things responsible to give advice on strengthening research capacity in collaboration countries and to support international research programs. In addition – and in line what SweDev has documented across other government authorities – the new instructions no longer contain any reference to Agenda 2030, whereas the previous instruction strongly connected Sida’s mandate to the international development goals.