Thank you to our Spanish hosts, UNESCO, and colleagues for your valuable reflections.

Culture is not only a human right with intrinsic value—it is also a powerful driver of sustainable development.

The cultural and creative sectors generate jobs, foster innovation, and offer green solutions. Art and culture build bridges across borders, beliefs, and generations. They enrich our lives in countless ways. Yet, they remain undervalued and underfunded.

To change this, we must build a fair, inclusive, and sustainable cultural economy. Norway emphasized this in our input to the MONDIACULT closing document. Governments have a key role to play—by funding arts and cultural institutions to ensure diversity and inclusion.

A central priority for Norway is improving economic conditions for artists. Fairness means artists must be able to work—and be paid. Culture cannot thrive on passion alone. Decent work, fair pay, and social protection are essential—not only for sustainability, but for artistic freedom and cultural rights.

We are taking concrete steps. Our White Paper on Artist Policy outlines ambitions to improve working conditions, including fair compensation and access to resources. Despite strong public funding, many artists still struggle to make a living. That’s why we’re developing national principles for fair pay and conducting regular surveys to monitor the sector.

We also recognize the impact of digitalization and artificial intelligence on the cultural economy. These technologies must be ethically governed. Norway is developing language models in Norwegian and Sámi to ensure AI reflects our cultural and democratic values—with transparency and respect for copyright.

Civil society is a vital partner. Norway recently convened 50 civil society actors to advise on MONDIACULT. Their message was clear: governments must act now to secure a fair cultural economy and address challenges posed by global digital platforms.

Reliable cultural data is also key. Without internationally comparable statistics, the true value of the cultural and creative sectors remains hidden.

Finally, we strongly support aligning cultural policies with broader socio-economic strategies. Culture must be integrated into development agendas—not as an afterthought, but as a cornerstone of inclusive and sustainable growth.

Thank you.