Crown Prince Haakon in Bergen

Crown Prince Haakon emphasised the following three points in his opening remarks in Grieg Hall: The ocean connects us. We are all dependent on the ocean. And the ocean is full of possibilities.

“A healthy ocean can solve many of our common challenges: It can play a critical role in feeding a growing global population. It can supply the world with clean energy,” the Crown Prince said.

Read the speech here.

Crown Prince Haakon opens the conference “The Ocean 2021”. Photo: Simen Løvberg Sund, The Royal Court.

The conference brings together representatives of the ocean-based industries, the research community and academia. This year marks the third time the conference has been held.

Presentations on a sustainable ocean economy and new ocean-based opportunities were available to participants in attendance in the conference venue or on a digital platform. The conference continues Wednesday.

Prepared for research

Earlier in the day, Crown Prince Haakon visited the research vessel Dr. Fridtjof Nansen, docked at Nykirke pier in Bergen.

The Crown Prince greeted the crew on the afterdeck and discussed the upcoming research expedition.

The crew on board the research vessel Dr. Fridtjof Nansen are ready for the next research expedition. Photo: Simen Løvberg Sund, The Royal Court.

Under the Nansen Programme, the vessel assists developing countries in their efforts to promote sustainable fisheries. Dr. Fridtjof Nansen will embark on ocean and coastal research expeditions in Africa and Asia to collect physical and biological information.

Norwegian development cooperation in fisheries

In March 2020, the research vessel returned to Norway due to of the COVID-19 pandemic, but is now ready for another expedition. Crown Prince Haakon wished the crew a safe journey.

The Nansen Programme is a cooperative effort between the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Institute of Marine Research.

Dr. Fridtjof Nansen is owned by Norad and operated by the Institute of Marine Research (IMR). CEO of IMR Sissel Rogne and ship’s captain Tommy Steffensen welcome the Crown Prince at the gangplank. Photo: Simen Løvberg Sund, The Royal Court. 

The programme was started in 1975, and is the largest and longest-running individual initiative in Norwegian development cooperation in fisheries. In 2017, a new phase of the Nansen Programme was launched, with a new, larger research vessel – the third consecutive ship bearing the same name. The third Dr. Fridtjof Nansen has enhanced laboratory facilities and room for more researchers on board than its predecessor.

In 2012 the Crown Prince visited the second Dr. Fridtjof Nansen vessel in Ghana.