Eirik Mofoss

Norwegian aid can accomplish much more if it is prioritized correctly. Here are suggestions on how

Below are two proposals for structural measures in the aid budget, and then two concrete budget amendments that can save free up room for action for new initiatives (a total of NOK 1 billion in 2026).

The death of the aid percentage: An analysis of what Norwegian aid goes to

Never before has the share of Norwegian aid going to poverty reduction and development been lower.

Input to Development Minister in Light of Global Aid Cuts

Global aid cuts must have consequences for Norwegian priorities.

The world's best insurance: How investments in global health security protect both Norway and the world

It's time to treat health as security policy.

CPR for foreign aid

The government is providing fresh billions for military support to Ukraine. But the fact that civilian aid is financed by cutting aid to the world's poorest threatens the very mainstay of Norwegian aid. That's why we are calling out the alarm, writing 25 organizations and actors.

Five predictions about the future of aid

International aid is not dead, but changing. Five trends in particular will shape the future of development, according to aid veteran Masood Ahmed.

Climate Investment Fund should be scaled up without Ministry of Finance as brake

Parliament has asked the government to strengthen the Climate Investment Fund, but the way it is done is crucial. The Treasury Department should not stand in the way.

Welcome as new NORAD Director

You can make Norwegian aid even better. Here are 10 suggestions on how.

This is how budget growth can be slowed

The government should get help to stop new spending. It comes out in the state's own evaluation.

Politics for the Future: How to better include the interests of future generations in Norwegian politics

Four proposals for institutional changes. Memo will be published no later than Wednesday, August 25.

Scare propaganda from the environmental movement is costing thousands of lives

Sacrificing children's lives for the sake of being is not defensible.

Budgets reveal: So little is passed on to local partners

We have looked at the budgets of Norad's twelve largest partners in Norway. The proportion transferred to local partners is disappointingly low.

More of the oil profits should go towards green investments

Norway's rightful share of climate finance is four times higher than it is today.

This is how Norfund should be scaled up

The Norwegian Parliament has asked the government to strengthen Norfund's Climate Investment Fund. The way it's done is crucial.

You are privileged, that gives you a responsibility.

Vær moralsk ambisiøse, Indøk-studenter

Antibiotic resistance requires new thinking — learn from Norwegian oil policy

No one will invest in developing new antibiotics, even if resistant bacteria are taking ever more lives. The solution lies in a well-known Norwegian success.

Children need education, but do they need their own education funds?

Nine aid leaders warn of cuts in support for education funds because education is important. But an important purpose does not make all remedies equally good. What if other measures can produce better results?

Better aid for a changed world: 100-day plan for new government

How to organize Norwegian aid? Part 4 of 4.

From words to action: Locally led development in Norwegian civil society support

How to organize Norwegian aid? Part 3 of 4.

When politicians fall short, the people have the answer

What can make a concrete worker from Brønnøysund, concerned with transport and district policy, become concerned about vaccines in Africa and antibiotic resistance? The answer is participation in a public panel, a democratic innovation that this spring has had its first expressions in Norwegian politics.

Everyone wants more, but who needs the assistance the most?

The reactions to Long Sight's cut proposals illustrate why they are needed.

Consultation input to the Fondsmeldingen 2025

Here, Long-Term follows its consultation input to Meld. St. about the State Pension Fund 2025, where we discuss the Fund's climate risks and investments in unlisted infrastructure.

Ten years of climate change - what has been followed up?

Over the past ten years, Norway has had five climate committees that have studied and described what Norway needs to do to adapt to climate targets. But we're still not on track. Long Term has gone through the recommendations of these committees, and assessed how much is actually followed up by politicians.

Time for reprioritization

How to free up room for action in Norwegian aid after US cuts

Input to Meld. St. on Peace and Conflict Resolution

In the report to the Storting on peace and conflict resolution, expected in August 2025, the think-tank Long Term below has answered two indicative questions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Letter to Støre and Aukrust: Make an early promise to Gavi

We urge the government to ensure that Norway makes an early pledge of binding support for Gavi at the same level as before.

Input to NBIM’s Climate Action Plan: Mitigating climate risk

We encourage NBIM to communicate these risks to policymakers in Norway and abroad and to ‘lead by example’ for other asset owners seeking a roadmap to stay the course on transition amidst unprecedented volatility.

Norwegian aid management should be streamlined

How to organize Norwegian aid? Part 2 of 4.

I put my trust in Jens Stoltenberg

Now we have a finance minister who understands security policy better than most. Someone who knows that defending Norway is more than bullets and gunpowder.

Leadership in crisis: a Nordic counter-reaction to Trump

With cuts to USAID, the world needs greater and more effective investments in sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Criticism must be based on facts to contribute to improvement

A former aid adviser criticizes both aid organizations, Norad and Long Term for defending themselves rather than providing answers. But without truthful stories, there is little to answer.

Have we reached “peak aid”?

The United States and several European countries are turning their backs on the world. Is this the beginning of the end for aid as we know it?

Aftenposten prevents an enlightened aid debate

Shutting down aid is as knowledgable as shutting down health care.

More knowledge-based aid. What's the next step?

Tighter budgets and new crises make it even more important to have knowledge-based and cost-effective aid. Norway is already doing a lot to make this happen, but we have more to go on. A working group has presented a report with new recommendations.

Improving the efficiency of Norwegian aid through the UN and the World Bank

In 2023, 31.7 billion Norwegian kroner (54% of Norway's aid budget) was allocated through multilateral organizations, with the UN system and the World Bank Group being the two main recipients. This note presents recommendations to the government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Norad on how the foreign service can become a more effective and coordinated donor to Norway's largest partners. We focus on the UN system and the World Bank in this first note of the series.

An invisible environmental poison costs millions of lives

Lead in food and paint causes health damage to millions of children every year. Poor countries in particular have a long way to go.

California has declared a state of emergency. The bird flu could become a global pandemic.

We are in a race against the clock.

Norwegian aid 2025 - what do the different parties think?

We have looked at the parties' alternative aid budget. Here's what we found.

Green Guarantees: A Free Climate Measure if Used Correctly

Through adjustments to Norway's new state guarantee scheme, Norway can trigger tens of billions in climate finance without paying a penny.

Dumbing down the debate on KI threats

We need more humility from leading voices.

An unsuitable humanitarian strategy

The principles of Norway's new humanitarian strategy are unsuitable for making budgetary priorities. It's a democratic problem.

Even the government can't claim that the electric car subsidies are effective climate policy now

Effective, global climate policy is not outdated. That's the future.

Cut electric car subsidies - spend the money out

The electric car subsidies cost too much and seem too little. Replace them with more effective climate action abroad.

Government's climate funding is tinkering with numbers

Norway contributes less than we claim and “aid-washes” profitable investments.

Norwegian aid could change the world for good

Certain measures, even aid skeptics may not dispute that have the desired effect. Childhood vaccination is a well-known example -- measures against lead poisoning could be next.

The Norwegian Red Cross misunderstands effectiveness

The Red Cross doesn't want to pit good causes against each other. But true humanity requires hard priorities.

Oil fund should set the AI standard

The Oil Fund can ensure more responsible AI development.

Norad misunderstands the investigation instruction

The assistance is exempt from the state's assessment guidelines, which require alternatives to be considered before decisions are made. It shouldn't be, even if Ingvar Olsen at Norad thinks so.

The crises we don't care about

Why do politicians engage for crises in the global north but look a different path when the crises happen in the south?

Norwegian aid is like an emergency room where friends are treated first

And the Minister of Health decides what treatment should be given.

Norwegian foundations are stingy

Billions of dollars are dusting down, rather than solving society's challenges. Foundations should provide more and faster.

Meat costs more than you think

It's the animals, farmers, taxpayers and future generations who pay for the meat you eat.

The Next Technology Revolution

Biological design will turn society upside down. Whether we like it or not.

Give the future a voice

Future generations depend on today's elections, but are not represented in today's politics. That's why they always lose.

Aid cuts will also hit Norway

Norway closes its eyes while the world burns. It is both unpatriotic and short-sighted.

We are blind to the tragedies of the horizon

Major societal threats with a low probability of occurring during an election period, or with consequences only far ahead of time, are systematically neglected in politics. Does it have to be so?