The Minister of Panchayati Raj and Rural Development, H. E. C. P. Joshi, visited Norway 12 – 15 September 2010. The host was the Minister of Local Governance and Regional Development, Liv Signe Navarsete.
The two ministers signed a Memorandum of Understanding on mutual cooperation on local governance. In the first Joint Forum on local governance, the two ministers noted that India and Norway have about the same share of female elected representatives at the local level. Effective promotion of women’s political leadership is identified as an area for cooperation. E-governance is another area where both countries have interesting lessons to share. The Norwegian minister was impressed about the voter turn-out at the Panchayat level in India. The Indian Minister expressed interest in Norwegian experiences in including youth in politics.
During the three day official visit, Minister Joshi paid a visit to Sigdal, one of the municipalities covered by a project to promote women in politics. The Indian delegation also met with the Parliamentary Ombudsman and the Equality and Anti-discrimination Ombud. There were also meetings with Norwegian researchers from the Norwegian Institute of Urban and Regional Research (NIBR) and the University of Oslo.
A joint working group on local governance was held on 15 September, and it was decided that a second joint working group at officials level be convened in India in 2011 to further operationalize the MoU. Joined workshops for academics and research may also be organized.
Minister Joshi extended an invitation to Minister Navasete to visit India.