Swiss Phil­an­thropy Foun­da­tion: what moti­va­tes the Swiss abroad to be generous

After the natio­nal elec­tions in 2019, it became clear that the Swiss abroad are connec­ted to Switz­er­land on the basis of values that go beyond the tradi­tio­nal right-left divi­sion. The Orga­niza­tion of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) and the Swiss Phil­an­thropy Foun­da­tion ther­e­fore commis­sio­ned gfs.bern to inves­ti­gate whether this bond also leads to a commit­ment to society.

Trans­pa­rency and solidarity

The survey shows that almost all Swiss abroad donate. Only six per cent have never dona­ted at all in the past three years. On the other hand, more than half stated that they donate regu­larly. On average, the Swiss abroad dona­ted between CHF 50 and CHF 499 each to two orga­ni­sa­ti­ons. Three quar­ters of respond­ents consider phil­an­thropy to be important. Howe­ver, only new percent include a dona­tion to an orga­ni­sa­tion in their will. In addi­tion to soli­da­rity, it is above all trans­pa­rency that moti­va­tes people to donate. Knowing what happens with the dona­tion is essen­tial for the Swiss abroad. Accor­ding to the Dona­tion Report 2022, this also applies to people living in Switz­er­land. Conver­sely, the lack of certainty as to whether a dona­tion will be put to good use is the main reason for refrai­ning from dona­ting. The Swiss abroad donate prima­rily to the fight against poverty and for social projects, huma­ni­ta­rian measu­res and deve­lo­p­ment aid. Two thirds donate in their coun­try of resi­dence. Only ten per cent donate in Switzerland.

From 26 June to 26 July 2023, 2583 respond­ents took part in the digi­tal survey. 

To the analy­sis (German)