The Norwegian Embassy Kampala has announced that it will close its operations in Uganda togther with the Consulate General in Guangzhou, China.
‘‘In a rapidly changing world, it is essential for us to have diplomats in the places where they can monitor global issues that have implications for Norway and promote Norwegian positions. At the same time, we must continually assess where it is best to maintain a presence in order to safeguard Norwegian interests optimally with the resources we have,” said Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Anniken Huitfeldt.
The Foreign Service’ officials said that Norway one of the world’s rich oil countries and having the highest GDP ,will have fewer, but more robust foreign service missions. “More diplomatic staff will be posted to the Norwegian Embassies in Accra, Addis Ababa, Dar es Salaam, Kinshasa and Nairobi in order to strengthen efforts in priority areas such as food security, business development and regional security in Africa. The Embassy in Beirut will be given a new diplomatic position dedicated to working with aid to Syria.”
‘The decision to close a foreign service mission obviously has an impact on our employees. We will take steps to ensure that the needs and rights of all staff members affected by the closures are adequately safeguarded. But we have a responsibility to use our resources as effectively as possible. There is now a need to increase staffing at multiple missions, and unfortunately that means that we have to close down missions in other places,’ Huitfeldt added.
Norway has one of the world’s highest Per capita income. Per capita income is a measure of the amount of money earned per person in a nation or geographic region. Per capita income is used to determine the average per-person income for an area and to evaluate the standard of living and quality of life of the population. Per capita income for a nation is calculated by dividing the country’s national income by its population.
The Norwegian Embassy in Kampala has been responsible for representing Norway in Burundi and Rwanda. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is now working on solutions to safeguard Norway’s diplomatic representation in these countries once the Embassy in Kampala is closed.
Starting in 2024, the Norwegian Embassy in Beijing and the General Consulate in Shanghai will be responsible for tasks currently carried out by the Consulate General in Guangzhou.
However officials have hastened to add that the closure of the Embassy in Kampala will not undermine the diplomatic relations between the two countries and the development cooperation will continue.
‘‘Norway will continue to invest significantly in development cooperation with Uganda through its civil society partners and multilateral organisations. We will also maintain our engagement in promoting human rights in the country, particularly the rights of women and minorities,’’ said Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim.
