Former head of the SDC Fritz Staehelin deceased
Published: Saturday, Dec 21st 2024, 11:40
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The former head of the former Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid, Fritz Staehelin, has passed away. The family made the announcement in an obituary in the "Neue Zürcher Zeitung" on Saturday.
Former Ambassador Staehelin headed the Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid (DEH), now known as the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), from 1983 to 1993. He stepped down as head in 1983 for reasons of age. He was succeeded as Director by Walter Fust.
Staehelin was born in Frauenfeld TG in 1928 as the son of a pastor, according to the Historical Dictionary of Switzerland. Trained as a teacher, he joined the then Federal Political Department in 1958. He was a diplomat in Paris, Bern and Cairo and from 1964 was a member of the Swiss OECD delegation in Paris.
In 1973, Staehelin was President of the Trade and Development Council of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad). He also worked at the Swiss Mission to the European Community in Brussels. From 1980 he served as ambassador in Tokyo. Staehelin died on December 13.
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