Middagsmottakelse med næringslivet i regi av generalkonsulatet i Rio

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure for me to meet you all this evening. First, I would like to thank the Consulate General in Rio for hosting this event.

This is my first time in Rio and I must say the city is amazing.

Just like my hometown Ålesund - more than 10 000 kilometres away from here - Rio de Janeiro faces the ocean.

Our oceans provide great opportunities. In Norway as in Brazil!

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Tonight we are bringing together Norwegian and Brazilian companies who all share a common interest in the ocean.

A great product from the ocean, which is close to my heart, is bacalhao – also known as clip fish. Although not on the menu tonight, I am sure that everyone in the Brazilian-Norwegian business community knows it well.

Allegedly, the first cargo of clip fish came to Brazil way back in 1842. Since then, tons of clip fish have followed the same route.

At the end of February this year, 8,360 tons of clip fish with a value of USD 96 958 496,54 (NOK 386 million) have travelled from Norway to Brazil. This is an increase in volume of 41 per cent, and an increase in value of USD 18 538 167,89 (NOK 115 million) when compared to the same period last year.

It is gratifying to see this increase in exports to Brazil!

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The ocean has always been the foundation for life, food, jobs and welfare in Norway. The ocean is the blue thread running through Norwegian history – through our culture, through our mentality, through our economy. 

However, today the oceans are facing major challenges: Marine littering and pollution, fisheries crime, and a shortage of knowledge on how to take care of marine life and ecosystems.

So how do we secure sustainable use of our oceans?

Dealing with these problems should be a global priority.

We need to take action.  The policies for development and business have to work together.

There is no way we can reach our goals without including the business community both here in Brazil and in Norway.

Because our two nations have a strong connection to the oceans.

They have constantly encouraged us to meet new challenges.

Responsible use of the oceans is the best way to solve these challenges.

And we can use the ocean even smarter than we do today.

That is why the Norwegian Government has launched an ambitious ocean strategy.

In Norway, we say that it is hard to see the borders under water. That is why we must manage the ocean through global cooperation.

We need to secure responsible management of resources along with, sustainable economic growth.

To have growth that will maintain future generations, as well as our own, we must conserve and sustainably use the oceans.

This affirms the need for our ocean policies to be knowledge-based.

Sustainable use requires an understanding of what sustainable is.

We need everyone onboard!

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Ladies and gentlemen,

The ocean is infinite. However, the supply of marine resources is not.

In order to have ocean wealth we must therefore work sustainably towards good ocean health. Only by doing this we can continue our great collaboration between our two nations regarding the export of bacalhao also in the years to come.

A lot about the future is unknown. However, you do not have to be a fortune-teller to tell that the ocean will remain our fortune – and continue to be our main supplier of wealth and health.

 Thank you for your attention!