ForUM – a member organization of PWYP Norway

May 8, 2014

Arms Trade Treaty: ForUM community celebrates approval for a new international arms trade treaty, here with Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide. The agreement was adopted at the United Nations in 2013 and now ForUM works to continue to monitor that countries ratify and implement the agreement. 

1. What does ForUM work with?

ForUM consists of over 50 environmental-, development- and peace organizations in Norway. ForUM is a meeting place and a professional expertise that works with policy development and advocacy. ForUMs vision is a democratic and peaceful world based on equity, solidarity, human rights and ecological sustainability.

2. Why did ForUM choose to become a member organization of PWYP Norway?

ForUM is working broadly on common policy developments in international environmental and development issues. Financial transparency in the extractive industry is a very important part of this, and PWYP Norway is sitting on a special expertise and networks, which is important for ForUM to take part in. We have therefore chosen to become a member organization of PWYP Norway.

3. What is the added value of PWYP Norway for the Norwegian civil society?

PWYP Norway is working specifically with financial transparency and extractive industries. The topic may seem narrow and difficult to access, but the decisions and policies in this area are of great importance for democracy, human rights, development and the environment. PWYP Norway has a unique depth of knowledge. This makes them an important resource for those organizations looking to highlight the themes in their own work, and a key driver for debate and knowledge sharing on the theme.

Petroleum Fund and ethics: In 2012, ForUM complained the Petroleum Fund to the Norwegian OECD contact point for investment in Posco, a steel company, who is accused of extensive human rights violations in their operations in India. The Petroleum Fund has received a lot of refs for this, and the case continues. Overall illustrates the complaint that there is a lot to grasp about the Bank's management of the Petroleum Fund and the Code of Conduct.