UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to visit Norway

‘The UN is a vital and highly valued partner for Norway, and I am therefore delighted that the UN Secretary-General is visiting our country. We will take the opportunity to highlight a number of important foreign policy and development policy topics. In particular, we will focus on the need for intensified international efforts to promote education,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende.

Together with Prime Minister Solberg, Mr Ban will launch the latest Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Progress Report. Mr Ban will then visit Longyearbyen and Ny-Ålesund in Svalbard, accompanied by Mr Brende, as part of his preparations for the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris in December.

‘The fact that the UN Secretary-General is returning to Svalbard sends an important signal to the international community. There is nowhere else in the world where the effects of climate change are as visible as they are in the Arctic. We need to see greater political engagement if we are to reach a robust and sustainable agreement on climate change in Paris in December,’ Mr Brende said.

Programme for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s visit to Norway: (subject to change)

Monday 6 July
11:10: Meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende at the Government Guest House in Parkveien, Oslo. Photo opportunity.

14:00–15:00: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon attends opening of the humanitarian forum ‘The Role of Civil Society in Humanitarian Emergencies’, hosted by the Norwegian Red Cross, together with Mr Brende. Open to the press. Red Cross Headquarters, Hausmannsgate 7, Oslo.

15:15: Mr Ban attends the closing of the side event to the Oslo Summit on Education for Development, Partnering for Education. Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Oslo. Apply for media accreditation here.

16:00: Mr Ban takes part in the global launch of the MDG Progress Report, together with Prime Minister Erna Solberg and President of Rwanda Paul Kagame. Press contact: Trygve Ølfarnes, UNDP Nordic Representation Office, email: Trygve.olfarnes@undp.org, mobile phone: +47 94 15 60 28.

16:45–17:05: Press conference with Mr Ban, Ms Solberg and Mr Kagame. Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Oslo.

19:00: Mr Ban attends reception at Oslo City Hall with Mr Brende and other participants from the Oslo Summit on Education for Development.

Tuesday 7 July
07:50–08:35: Breakfast meeting with Ms Solberg.  

09:00–09:30: Mr Ban and Ms Solberg attend opening ceremony of Oslo Summit on Education for Development. Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Oslo. Photo opportunity at 08:55, when HRH Crown Prince Haakon, Mr Ban, Ms Solberg and Mr Brende arrive. Apply for media accreditation for the conference here.

09:45–10:00: Press conference with Mr Ban and Ms Solberg. Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Oslo.

11:00: Audience with HRH Crown Prince Haakon at the Royal Palace.  

17:15: Mr Ban, Mrs Ban and Mr Brende depart for Longyearbyen.

20:20: Arrival in Longyearbyen. Immediate transfer to the research vessel RV Lance, docked in Longyearbyen. Photo opportunity.

20:30–21:15: Meeting with Johannes Breivik (13) and Erika Gjelsvik (13), participants on the children’s television programme Mission Nansen (Oppdrag Nansen). It will be possible to film the meeting.

Wednesday 8 July
08:00–12:30: Visit to Kongsfjorden, Kronebreen and Blomsterhalvøya to observe the effects of climate change in the Arctic region. 12:00: Meeting with the press on board RV Lance. 

12:50: Visit to Kings Bay Marine Laboratory, Ny-Ålesund.

13:30: Luncheon in Amundsen Villa.

14:45: Visit to the French–German research station AWIPEV. Mr Ban releases the weather balloon.

18:00: Visit to Svalbard Satellite Station, one of the world’s largest ground stations for environmental and climate data.

19:00: Return to Oslo and New York.

Press contacts:
The Prime Minister’s Office: Anne Nordskog, mobile phone: +47  97 53 09 48, email: anne.nordskog@smk.dep.no
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs: for the visit to Oslo: Astrid Sehl, mobile phone: +47 92 28 47 52, email: asse@mfa.no
For the visit to Svalbard: Ane Haavardsdatter Lunde, mobile phone: +47 97 67 12 50, email: ane.lunde@mfa.no