Why Norway is closing its embassy in Uganda

The Norwegian government has announced that it will close its embassies in Uganda and Guangzhou, China, come 2024.

In a statement, the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anniken Huitfeldt, said the move is part of the government’s ongoing assessment of its foreign service to best safeguard its development policy priorities in line with available resources.

According to the government, the missions will be closed in 2024 while the diplomat positions from these two missions will be redirected to other Norwegian diplomatic and consular missions.

“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 Minister Huitfeldt is quoted as saying in a statement on the official government website.

The government says as part of the changes, Norway will have fewer, but more robust Foreign Service missions while 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.”

Their Embassy in Beirut will be given a new diplomatic position dedicated to working with aid to Syria.

The Norwegian Embassy in Kampala is responsible for representing Norway in Burundi and Rwanda. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it 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, they said.

However, the minister said development cooperation with Uganda to continue

Norway provides substantial aid to Uganda. In 2022, Uganda received NOK 382 million in earmarked funds from Norway for efforts in priority areas such as civil society, education, energy, refugees and women’s rights.

“The closure of the Embassy in Kampala does not mean that Norwegian aid to the country will be discontinued, or that there will be less focus on the rights of women and minorities. The decision has been taken based on an assessment of the Foreign Service’s overall resources,” the minister said.

“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.