Norway's development minister talks global distrust, climate funding

If there’s one thing that keeps Anne Beathe Tvinnereim up at night, it's that global “distrust is growing,” said the Norwegian international development minister. In a briefing to journalists this week, Tvinnereim expressed concern at the prospect of lower-income countries, particularly in Africa, being left out of discussions in Western capitals — as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues to soak up governments’ bandwidth — and losing faith in the multilateralism as a result. Trust in the international system has already taken a battering from inequity of COVID-19 vaccine distribution and failures to act on climate change, among other issues. But Tvinnereim, a politician clearly in command of her brief, also thinks some countries are also “fueling that distrust” — and made no bones about which. “I don't think it's any coincidence that [Russian Foreign Minister Sergey] Lavrov has made several trips to Africa; we see Chinese interest in Africa,” said Tvinnereim. She cited Lavrov’s trip as just one example of why it’s important that “Norway and like-minded countries do not withdraw but rather increase our international support and international conversation, because developing countries need to see that they are not forgotten.” Lower-income countries “did not choose to become part of a new scramble,” she added, in an apparent reference to the Scramble for Africa, which saw European colonial powers divide up the continent for their own benefit in the 19th century. “We cannot risk ending up in a situation where developing countries feel that it is the West against the rest.” --— Anne Beathe Tvinnereim, international development minister, Norway It’s in the interest of Norway and the West to “fight back that polarization with any means that we have, and development is just one of many tools that we should use,” said Tvinnereim, also citing improving bilateral relations as a countermeasure to Russian and Chinese influence in Africa. Tvinnereim said she wanted to reduce international polarization, and that she “strongly” opposed the politics of “if you're not with us, you're against us” on issues like Ukraine. “We cannot risk ending up in a situation where developing countries feel that it is the West against the rest,” she added. This message extended to the use of aid budgets for domestic refugee spending, as in the United Kingdom, where billions have been raided from official development assistance to pay for accommodation costs. “My message to my colleagues in other like-minded countries [is] yes, the world is watching us. Are we able to have solidarity with refugees and the war in Ukraine, while at the same time remembering that there are other other crises out there?” asked Tvinnereim. She said it was important that Europe and the West continue to show “solidarity with the rest of the world, although things are rough at home.” She admitted that Norway’s government is “struggling to do both” — NGOs have raised concerns that domestic refugee costs might be siphoned off the aid budget, though Tvinnereim said she didn’t think that was a likely outcome. Despite massive revenues from windfall oil and gas profits, there has also been uncertainty around Norway’s aid budget. Normally pegged at 1% of gross national income — one of the highest in the world — it hasn’t risen as fast as the government’s coffers, and was estimated at 0.76% in February by Norad, the Norwegian development agency. But the Nansen Support Programme for Ukraine has changed that. The multiyear 75 billion Norwegian kroner ($7 billion) commitment, which also contains NOK 5 billion for food security in sub-Saharan Africa, means Norway’s aid budget is now likely to come to 0.97%, estimated Tvinnereim. Tvinnereim acknowledged the “symbolism” of the 1% aid budget and promised to “always struggle” for it, but added that Norwegian aid is already at “record high.” Norway can afford such a generous aid budget because of its fossil fuel wealth. But the country is facing increased criticism of its oil and gas policies, as climate concerns increasingly dominate the development agenda. Prominent Ugandan activist, Vanessa Nakate, accused the government of “hypocrisy and lies” at the Norway development agency’s annual conference in February over its authorization of record drilling, including in the Arctic. “I'm pragmatic, because we cannot we cannot reduce or stop drilling in one year … I believe that the green transition in Norway, including in the petroleum sector, should be as fast as possible,” said Tvinnereim, in comments marking her out as an exception in government. Norway has no stated plans to reduce drilling. Tvinnereim continued: “But I do think we need to have two thoughts in our head at the same time. It's just a privilege to see that we are able to use some of our surplus in investing in climate measures in other parts of the world, that's a positive contribution.” At the Glasgow Climate Conference in 2021, Norway committed to doubling climate finance to NOK 14 billion by 2026, and tripling its support to adaptation funding. Tvinnereim, who called adaptation funding “absolutely key,” also supported the idea of climate-related loss and damage funding, a form of climate reparations. Despite the world agreeing to a dedicated loss and damage fund at COP 27, it has been a very contentious area of climate policy. Whether Norway would provide specific funding for it — which would be politically symbolic — was still being discussed in government. Doing so is “absolutely possible but we need to see the mechanism for allocating that money first,” she said. “Give me a credible mechanism and I’m all for it.” A spokesperson for Tvinnereim later told Devex the government was unable to determine its position on a loss and damage mechanism launched on March 6 as it had not yet conducted an assessment on it. Norway has already been supporting programs related to loss and damage, a spokesperson for Tvinnereim later claimed. The spokesperson cited programs on forced displacement, disaster risk finances, and early warning systems. Tvinnereim warned against complicating matters as the new loss and damage fund is developed, “so that we end up in years and years of negotiations.” “The focus now should be to get climate finance that has been committed … out to the countries that need it. I share the frustration [of] some developing countries that access to climate funding. is way too difficult. And that is really something I'm working hard on.” The Green Climate Fund, the main institution for dispersing climate finance to lower-income countries, has often been criticized for the difficulties accessing its money. Tvinnereim said she recognized this was a problem. While Norway would continue to be a “major contributor” to the body, she said: “I expect the GCF to speed up access for developing countries in terms of funding … I am impatient to see results.”