Kjell Magne Bondevik Biography
Born and raised in central Norway’s Romsdal fjord region, Kjell Magne Bondevik studied theology at the University of Oslo. While there, he also became active in the Norwegian Young Christian Democrats, the party once led by his uncle and namesake, Kjell Bondevik. While still a student, Kjell Magne rose through the ranks to become the party’s vice-chair and was elected to Norway’s Parliament in 1973. In 1979 he was ordained a Lutheran minister.
During the 1980s, Bondevik served as minister for foreign affairs, minister for church and education, as well as deputy prime minister. In 1997 Bondevik became prime minister in a tenuous coalition that contributed to his taking an official medical leave of absence for depression, which made international headlines and received an outpouring of support from the Norwegian people. Following Bondevik’s second term as prime minister, from 2001–2005, when his party lost the majority, he moved away from active involvement in politics.
In 2006 Bondevik founded the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, established to focus international work in three areas: human rights, democracy, and inter-religious and intercultural dialogue. Each of these areas has several ongoing active projects around the world.
In 2006, UN secretary-general Kofi Annan named him to serve as the special humanitarian envoy for the Horn of Africa, which includes Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti, and Ethiopia.
Links
Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights
http://www.oslocenter.no