Launches Work on High North Strategy to Boost Growth and Investment

The Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) has launched work on a brand new High North strategy for the business sector. 

The strategy is a project anchored centrally within NHO, which is Norway's largest employers' organisation, and will focus on what can help create more growth in the High North.

Stein Gunnar Hansen, Head of International and Arctic Relations at Renewables Norway (Fornybar Norge), is leading the work on the strategy. HNN meets Hansen in Bodø, Northern Norway, to discuss the forthcoming strategy, which is due to be ready early next year.  

The project manager has recently been to other key locations in the north to gather input from the business sector. 

"We need to devote greater efforts to the work we do in the north to establish the right framework conditions for the business sector. The aim is to encourage the breadth of Norwegian business and industry to look northwards to a greater extent for its investments and activities," Hansen tells High North News.

"This is neither a regional strategy nor a strategy solely for businesses in Northern Norway, but a national strategy for the entire country," he emphasises. 

"Must be concrete"

"We have deliberately chosen the term 'High North strategy', building on the Norwegian government's 20-year-old pledges that the High North is Norway's most important strategic priority area."

"The project has been very well received by the business sector, and I find that meeting with us is a priority from management level. At the same time, there is an expectation that we will not come up with anything vague, but that the strategy will be clear on behalf of the business sector. We must use this opportunity to be concrete about where the challenges lie," he says. 

Identifying barriers 

Hansen elaborates that the strategy will examine the situation in the North across cross-sectoral areas such as infrastructure, energy and people. 

"What needs to be done in these areas? What constitutes the barriers to growth in business and industry? We will also propose measures here," he says. 

"There will also be sector chapters on tourism, seafood, energy, technology and industry. Here, we will assess the status for business and industry within each area."

The work will first examine whether business and industry is positive to increasing its activity and investing in the High North. Regardless of whether the response is positive or not, the project will then identify barriers to growth and propose measures to remove or reduce these barriers. 

"Business and industry do not need crutches, but the right conditions in place" Hansen stresses.

An important role

NHO's new strategy has become more relevant due to several changing circumstances in the North. These include the changed security policy situation in the High North, as well as a renewed focus on security of supply, preparedness, competitiveness and climate. 

"We are in a situation where Europe and Norway need to increase their competitiveness. Some of the answers lie in the north. This concerns, among other things, energy, minerals and food. In addition, we face a climate and nature crisis. Some of the answers to this also lie in the north," the project manager elaborates.

He is also clear about the connection between business and preparedness.

"The role of business in the High North is not to become a new sector authority or a preparedness unit in the defence of Norway. We are to contribute to profitable businesses and jobs throughout the country. However, this entails sovereignty and preparedness. There is no doubt about that," he says.

"The business sector believes that the High North is of national strategic importance. We agree that the business sector plays a key role. If we are to create vibrant, resilient local communities that contribute to the assertion of sovereignty and preparedness, this cannot be done solely through public-sector jobs. There must be a mix," he adds.

In this context, Hansen also highlights the opportunities opening up through the ongoing build-up of the Norwegian Armed Forces in the north. 

"In all of this, we must point out what is currently holding back opportunities and identify measures to remove barriers to increased business activity in the north."

"We must have an explicit goal of increasing activity and growing the population in the north. We cannot be satisfied with measures that merely slow the decline; we need to reverse it," he concludes. 

Opportunities across national borders

Which points do you think will be particularly important in the further work? 

"There is no doubt that access to qualified labour is a recurring theme in the feedback we receive. We need to address this, and perhaps even be somewhat radical in our proposals."

"In addition, land-use conflicts are something that is continually reported. This also applies to the issue of power and energy. This underpins business development and, consequently, population growth, and the aim is to find solutions to this as quickly as possible."

Finally, Hansen points out that it will also be relevant to consider the business opportunities that exist from an east-west perspective. 

"There are relatively few major business partnerships and projects across national borders in the North Nordic region, although there are a number of initiatives between Norway, Sweden and Finland at government level, as well as those in the portfolios of organisations such as the Arctic Council and the Arctic Economic Council. 

"In light of the security architecture now being built up in the North, we must consider the needs and opportunities opening up for civilian, business-oriented cooperation," he stresses.