Activities of Secretary-General in Norway, 10-11 October
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Oslo from New York on Monday morning, 10 October.
He delivered the keynote address at the “Energy for All: Financing Access for the Poor” Conference. He said that energy is at the centre of the sustainable development agenda and called for universal access by 2030. (See Press Release SG/SM/13862.)
The Secretary-General then participated in a high-level debate on “Energy and the Road Towards Rio+20”, together with Prime Minister Raila Odinga of Kenya, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg of Norway, and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia.
Speaking to reporters, the Secretary-General thanked Norway for helping to bring energy for all to the top of the political agenda.
He later attended a working lunch on Rio+20 with those leaders, as well as the Deputy Prime Minister for Energy of Iraq.
The Secretary-General also held bilateral meetings with Prime Minister Stoltenberg, and the two addressed the press on the launch of the Norwegian Government initiative “Energy +”. The Secretary-General praised the Government’s commitment to multilateralism and lauded the entire country for safeguarding its open society after the attacks of 22 July.
The Secretary-General then paid a solemn visit to the Oslo site of the 22 July bomb attack, and also to Oslo Cathedral, where he expressed condolences and solidarity.
There were other meetings that day with Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, and Erik Solheim, Minister of the Environment and International Development.
That afternoon, the Secretary-General also went to the Storting, the Norwegian Parliament, where he addressed members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Scrutiny and Constitutional Affairs and answered their questions.
In the early evening, he attended a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Fridtjof Nansen in the presence of Their Majesties King Harald V and Queen Sonja, as well as top Government officials. He praised Nansen as a great explorer who “helped map the way to a better world” and urged all to continue along this journey. (See Press Release SG/SM/13865.)
In the evening, the Secretary-General attended a dinner, hosted by Ola Borten Moe, Norway’s Minister of Petroleum and Energy, at the Oslo City Hall for participants at the “Energy for All” conference.
The Secretary-General departed Oslo early on Tuesday morning and flew to Copenhagen, Denmark.