Norwegian Flag Flies for the First Time at ECLAC’s Offices

The flag of the Kingdom of Norway was raised for the first time today at the headquarters of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago, Chile during a ceremony that marked its incorporation as a Member State of this United Nations regional organization.

The ceremony was presided over by Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC’s Executive Secretary, and was attended by Tone Skogen, Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Norway. Other participants included representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Chile (among them officials from the Embassy of Peru, the country that currently presides ECLAC), as well as authorities and officials from international organizations.

In her speech, ECLAC’s Executive Secretary gave the official welcome to Norway as a full member of the institution. She stressed the country’s participation within the United Nations as a promoter of multilateralism and an advocate of the three pillars of its founding charter: human rights, peace and security, and sustainable development.

Bárcena said that despite the geographical distance, Norway and Latin America and the Caribbean share common values and have great opportunities to deepen their mutual collaboration in search of their societies’ common good.

Since 2012, Norway and ECLAC have carried out joint projects to promote equality in Latin America and the Caribbean. This cooperation has expanded as well to include progress on the Commission’s Gender Equality Observatory, the realization of seminars with public and private sectors on the governance of natural resources, and the publication of various books and documents on all these initiatives.

Bárcena also announced a new joint initiative by the two parties aimed at strengthening ties between vocational education, employment and training, whose main objective is to demonstrate the importance of education as a pillar to achieving equality through decent employment.

“We feel very proud that this ceremony is taking place one week after the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of the transformative 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in which Norway has been so involved together with the 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean,” Bárcena said. “Norway has been an important partner in development, State-building and, more recently, in fostering the public-private alliance that should be in place to implement the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda,” she added.

The Norwegian Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs said the relationship of her country with ECLAC strengthens Norway’s strategic partnership and ties with the region, in addition to promoting collaboration in areas of shared interest. She added that under the leadership of the current Executive Secretary, the Commission has put equality and structural change at the center of the debate on development.

“Our aim is to further develop a mutually beneficial relationship between Norway and ECLAC,” Tone Skogen said.

After the ceremony, the authorities signed ECLAC’s book of distinguished visitors and held a private meeting.

The admission of the Kingdom of Norway to ECLAC was recommended by the Commission’s Committee of the Whole during its thirtieth session, held in New York in March 2015, and was subsequently approved officially during the 54th plenary session of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, which took place on July 22, 2015.