Development Workers’ Day 2026: Meet our development workers!

The experience and knowledge of those working in public institutions are among the greatest assets for making progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. They represent a country’s #PublicExpertise, and mobilising and sharing this talent lies at the heart of FIAP’s cooperation projects. Today, on Development Workers’ Day, we celebrate the tremendous commitment shown by each and every one of them.

In the last year alone, we have deployed 661 professionals from our public sector to overseas cooperation projects, including 62 aid workers on long-term missions (lasting more than six months). They have worked with institutions in over 120 countries to promote public systems that benefit people and the planet.

In 2025, we managed to increase the number of women deployed by 3 per cent, thereby narrowing the gender gap. By 2024, we had already increased the number of women deployed by 7 per cent. You can view the full profile of public sector aid workers here.

Furthermore, on 23 June we celebrated the United Nations Public Service Day with an event dedicated to ‘Pioneers: women who opened the doors to institutions’. Institutions, across all sectors and territorial levels, play a key role in the development and implementation of public policies, not only to narrow the gender gap, but also to bring about the necessary transformation that would guarantee full equality of rights and opportunities. For this reason, this year’s event focused on the contribution of various Spanish institutions to feminist cooperation, and we highlighted the pioneering women who opened the doors to these institutions for other women, promoting equal access or holding decision-making positions within them.

This is an event we have been celebrating for five years alongside our public sector staff, which promotes the value of public services and public governance.

Cooperation between institutions is key to a multilateral world in which different countries work together to find solutions to shared challenges.

Here we bring you the stories of our #PublicExpertise – professionals who have shared their expertise to create a better world.

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