Hagen: Africa is important trade partner for Norway
Opening speech delivered by Marianne Hagen, State Secretary at Norway’s Foreign Ministry, at a seminar by Norwegian-African Business Association (NABA) in Oslo, Norway on January 24. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to start by thanking NABA for organising this seminar, and for the close cooperation that we have enjoyed for many years now. […]
Speech: Swedish PM Löfven presents government policy
On Monday, January 21, Sweden’s re-elected Prime Minister Stefan Löfven presented his government’s statement of policy to the Riksdag (Parliament): Mr Speaker, Honourable Members of the Swedish Riksdag, All around Europe, extreme right-wing movements are spreading. In several countries, forces with an antidemocratic agenda have made it all the way to government. But in Sweden […]
Liberian mining agreement: The case of Hummingbird Resources
The National Investment Commission (NIC) has announced that the Liberian government and the Hummingbird Resources Inc have signed a gold-mineral development concession worth over US$ 250 Million. The agreement between the government and Hummingbird was negotiated and signed but very little was known about the contents of these negotiations, and actual terms of the agreements, due to opaque processes, […]
The problem with Liberian public education
There is a popular saying that religion has no place in public schools or any other public sphere. This idea is propagated under the guise of “the separation of church and state.” This false notion has influenced Liberian state education, and it has subjected itself to purge religious literacy out of public school learning curriculum, […]
Six principles of the Liberian constitution
Popular Rule: “We the People…” Our current constitution (1986) begins with the idea of popular rule. This important principle means that power, begins with the people. This principle is best reflected in the Preamble, Article I and Article 5a. Popular rule is the thought that the average citizen can be trusted to make important decisions […]
Norway’s statement at UN Climate Confab in Poland
Mr. President, Heads of States and Governments, Indigenous Peoples delegations, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen. The signal given from the IPCC special report on 1,5 degrees is loud and clear: the target is still within reach, but the coming years are critical. We must increase our ambitions by 2020. If not, the goal of the Paris […]
Payputt: Changing the game for crowdfunding in Africa
Payputt is an instant, transparent and convenient way for Ghanaian individuals, groups and organisations to raise funds for causes that are close to their heart, whether it be social or economic. It is a purely donation-based platform allowing donors from any part of the world to support local causes while giving Ghanaians the power to […]
Search for African solutions to African problems
How can the African Union (AU) work to better prevent violent conflicts on the continent and resolve existing conflicts? What support should the outside world give to the AU peace work? Those questions were discussed by over 90 participants at a conference, or research and policy dialogue as we chose to call it, that AU […]
Human rights key to Norway’s foreign policy
Minister of Foreign Affairs Ine Eriksen Søreide’s opening address at a seminar on freedom of speech and freedom of the press – a collaboration between Fritt Ord, The Norwegian Union of Journalists, Article 19 and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ladies and gentlemen, On this day in 2013, the French journalists Ghislaine Verlon and […]
Speech: Mr. President, Liberians cannot wait
It is an honor and I am grateful for the opportunity we were given to speak to you on this special occasion. I am humbled by your preferment to serve as your keynote speaker tonight. I stand before you today, not only as a proud citizen of Lofa county; but also, a grandson of a […]
