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Norway has closed its embassy in Lusaka, Zambia, saying it was pointless to keep funding a country which did not show commitment to improving its own management, News24.com can report.

According to The Post, the Ambassador of Norway Mr.Arve Ofstad cited corruption as one of the reasons why his country was moving out of Zambia.

“There was a feeling that the anti-corruption fight has been going very much up and down and we feel that when a country doesn’t make enough use of its own resources. It’s not doing well enough in terms of public resource management, in terms of its distributional policies, then we should leave,” the ambassador was quoted as saying.  

Ofstad said that remaining in Zambia was not viable due to the lack of accountability and progress, Lusaka Times reported.

“As of today- we found that it was more necessary to keep our embassies elsewhere. Sorry, but that’s reality,” Ambassador Ofstad said. 

Reacting to the development, opposition Rainbow Party national youth chairperson McDonald Mulongoti, said this was a clear indication that Zambian President Edgar Lungu had failed the country. 

The embassy formally closed on 7 April.

Norway will also close down its embassies in Harare in Zimbabwe, Sofia in Bulgaria, and Astana in Kazakhstan.

Norwegian Foreign Ministry, Oslo.

Press release from the Norwegian Embassy in Lusaka / Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: http://www.norway.org.zm/

Source: www.news24.com, Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Royal Norwegian Embassy in Lusaka

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