Allocations for the High North to be increased by NOK 514 million

“Norway must continue to take the lead in developing the High North,” said Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. “The Government is therefore proposing a record increase of NOK 514 million in the High North allocation for 2009. This means that over the past three years the Government has increased its funding for High North efforts by nearly NOK one billion.”  

These efforts cover a broad range of areas, and are being funded over the budgets of 10 different ministries. The proposals reflect an increased focus on cooperation with Russia, research, fisheries, the environment, petroleum exploration and issues relating to indigenous peoples, all of which are priority areas in the High North Strategy. The increased funding for priority areas includes NOK 60 million for seismic surveys in the counties of Nordland and Troms, NOK 88 million for improved oil pollution emergency response, NOK 74 million for emergency tugboat services, NOK 10 million for marine bioprospecting, NOK 100 million to promote onshore value creation and NOK 22 million for a resource centre for ice and climate.  

“Norway has a responsibility to safeguard Norwegian sovereignty and ensure the sound management of both renewable and non-renewable resources. This means that we need to further develop our cooperation with Russia and strengthen contact with our neighbours and allies in the north. The Nordic framework provides the basis for closer cooperation on common challenges in our neighbouring areas. Our 2009 budget proposal will further enhance these efforts,” the Foreign Minister continued. 

In the Foreign Ministry’s budget for 2009, it is proposed that NOK some 280 million be allocated for High North purposes, an increase of NOK 15 million over 2008. These funds are intended to cover the Foreign Ministry’s priority areas in the High North, which are strengthened cooperation with Russia, the Barents Cooperation and the Arctic Council. NOK 7 million is earmarked for culture, promotion and information measures in the High North. 

“Under the Barents 2020 programme for knowledge-building in the north, the Government is creating arenas for cooperation between Norwegian and foreign centres of knowledge with a view to updating and increasing our knowledge about the High North,” said Mr Støre. 

Funding for the Barents 2020 programme will be increased by NOK 35.2 million in 2009. Project cooperation with northwestern Russia will be increased by NOK 7 million to NOK 130 million. 

“In its policy platform, the Government highlighted the High North as its most important strategic priority area. This has therefore been an area of active diplomatic efforts for the foreign service. We are now seeing that a number of countries are directing their attention towards the north, not least because of the opportunities and challenges related to energy, transport and climate change,” the Foreign Minister added. 

Our efforts in the High North have a time horizon of generations. We have, however, seen progress in recent years. Our cooperation with Russia has resulted in a simplified border procedures, improved opportunities for labour migration and less overfishing in the Barents Sea. A section of the maritime boundary with Russia has been finally determined and we have made good headway on the dismantling of decommissioned nuclear submarines. A grant scheme for the High North has also been established. Knowledge about the High North has been significantly boosted through a number of research and development projects. We have also improved maritime safety in the waters around Svalbard and strengthened oil pollution emergency response in North Norway. Furthermore, we have presented a white paper on Sami policy,” he continued. 

The Government’s High North strategy contains a list of 22 measures. The proposal for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ 2009 budget gives an overall presentation of the Government’s High North efforts and a status report on the implementation of the High North strategy.