Governor General of Canada to undertake state visit to Norway

Photo: Sgt Serge Gouin, Rideau Hall.

At the request of the Right Honorable Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister of Canada Michaelle Jean, Governor General of Canada, along with her husband, His Excellency Jean-Daniel Lafond, will conduct a State visit to the Kingdom of Norway, from April 28 to 30, 2009.

Their Majesties King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway will accompany Their Excellencies throughout the State visit, which will help to further develop bilateral relations between the two countries. The visit will underscore our shared values, including the importance we place on finding a fair balance between economic development and environmental protection, and the priority we give to education and youth engagement. This State visit will also provide an opportunity for Canada and Norway to pool their expertise on Arctic development and northern populations.

A delegation of Canadians representing a variety of fields-including diversity, governance, arts and culture, civic engagement and youth-will play an active role in Their Excellencies’ meetings with civil society. Information about members of the Canadian delegation will be available at www.gg.ca.

State visits by a governor general play an important role in Canada’s relations with other countries. They are the highest form of diplomatic contact, and they mark further developments in bilateral relations and exchanges among peoples.

The public can follow the State visit to Norway through the speeches, photos and videos available daily at Gg.ca. Blogs written by Their Excellencies and the delegates will be posted on Citizenvoices.gg.ca.

Source: www.gg.ca