Security Council campaign costs

On 17 June 2020, the UN General Assembly elected Norway as a member of the UN Security Council for the period 2021–2022. Norway carried out an election campaign during the period 2016–2020, which consisted mainly of extensive diplomatic efforts targeted at UN member states and aimed at promoting Norway as a partner in the UN and Norwegian foreign policy. The direct costs incurred totalled NOK 34 million (approx. 3,6 MUSD).

Ensuring transparency with regard to the costs in connection with the campaign has been a key priority. With this in mind, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has published an overview of the costs incurred once every six months. See previous overviews of costs.

Relevant expenses included travel, representation, courses, seminars and other preparations for work on the Council, campaign materials and promotional activities, salaries for temporary employees and special representatives, two study trips and a travelling exhibition. Salaries and other expenses related to permanent employees in the Ministry and at missions abroad are not included in the overview. Nor are travel expenses that are not directly related to the campaign. The overview only includes extraordinary costs directly related to the campaign.

There were changes in the costs in the last three months of the campaign as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Expenses for travel and entertaining at diplomatic and consular missions and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were lower than expected in 2020. At the same time, there were additional expenses related to carrying out digital meetings and events.

Costs directly related to the campaign	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Travel [i]	111.965	1.053.958	1.296.246	2.150.643	355.253
Representation [ii]		12.099	32.259	48.683	24.408
Campaign materials and promotional activities [iii]		838.307	3.353.711	1.281.233	455.571
Courses, seminars and other preparations for work on the Council [iv]		16.661	597.562	590.411	35.806
Allocations to missions for entertaining and travel costs [v]		500.000	3.725.000	5.059.939	1.511.625
Allocation to the Embassy in Pretoria for exhibition [vi]				2.000.000	0
Salaries for temporary employees/special representatives [vii]		31.850	824.379	2.023.650	2.085.126
Study trips for UN ambassadors [viii]				3.933.644	76.049
Total (NOK)	111.965	2.452.875	9.829.157	17.088.194	4.543.840
Total costs 2016-2020 (NOK)				34.026.031

 

[i] Trips directly related to the campaign carried out by employees in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and special representatives.

[ii]  Refreshments at meetings, working lunches and dinners.

[iii] Visual identity, work on information videos, brochures, translations, campaign materials.

[iv] In-house seminars and other preparations, including funding for a handbook about the Security Council.

[v] Extra allocations for travel and entertaining expenses for selected diplomatic and consular missions (Abuja, Accra, Bamako, Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Canberra, Dar es Salaam, Havana, Luanda, Mexico City, Paris, Prague, Pretoria, Riyadh, Permanent Mission to the UN in New York).

[vi] Funding for travelling exhibition on Norway’s contribution to African liberation.

[vii] Salaries for temporary employees of the Permanent Mission to the UN in New York and for special representatives who are not permanent employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

[viii] Study trips to Oslo and Tromsø, with a main focus on the oceans and climate change.