Celebrating 50 years of industrial cooperation

Your Excellencies
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen

I am pleased to be here tonight – in these unique surroundings. The national museum is an architectural masterpiece, and I understand that the architect was inspired by the desert rose. It is remarkable how the structure alludes to the features of the famous crystal. The many cavities in the structure also reminds us of the museum’s role as a shield and protector of Qatar’s rich cultural heritage.

It is a great pleasure for me to be back in Qatar. My first visit was in 2010, when I took part in the opening of QATALUM. Back then, I also had the chance to visit another of Doha’s iconic cultural buildings, the impressive Museum of Islamic Art.

Tonight we celebrate 50 years of successful business cooperation between Qatar and Norway. Although our two countries are far apart geographically, it is great to see the extent to which our cooperation has expanded over the past 50 years. Today, Norwegian companies are engaged in a variety of Qatari industrial sectors, including the energy, maritime, and defence sectors, as well as aluminum production and agriculture.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to His Highness the Emir for his warm and gracious welcome. I would also like to extend my thanks to the management of QAFCO for hosting the 50th jubilee celebration earlier today.

Qatar and Norway are different in many ways, but we also have much in common. Both our countries have long coastlines, we both depend deeply on the oceans and the blue economy – and, not least, we are both major and reliable producers of energy. We believe in multilateralism, we are committed partners in international organizations, and we engage actively in mediation.

These efforts unite us.

We appreciate our close partnership and our open dialogue. Meeting the challenge of global warming and the need to reach the sustainable development goals are also of common interests to our countries.

By continuing our cooperation, we can share knowledge, ideas and technology that will help us to find innovative and effective solutions to these challenges. I witnessed an impressive example of technology-sharing today at the Hassan Food Greenhouse. This joint Norwegian-Qatari enterprise aims to combat the challenge of falling groundwater levels. The pilot greenhouse technology will reduce the amount of water required for growing vegetables by 90 %. It will contribute to water resource management and sustainable food production.

We have a shared responsibility to promote sustainable economic growth. With so many prominent guests and business leaders present tonight, I am confident we will inspire each other, and that together we will be able to build a prosperous future based on solutions that respect the environment as well as the welfare of people.

Let me finish by thanking the National Museum and tonight’s hosts – the CEOs of Yara, Kongsberg Group, Hydro and Equinor, in partnership with QAFCO and QATALUM – for making this evening so pleasant and memorable.

Thank you for your attention.