Torild Skard

Torild Skard

Torild Skard (born November 29, 1936 in Oslo ) is a Norwegian politician , diplomat , UN official and women's rights activist. She was President of the Upper House of the Norwegian Parliament from 1973 to 1977 and then worked as a Norwegian diplomat and UN official, including Vice Secretary-General of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs , UNICEF Regional Director for West Africa and Central Africa and Chairwoman of the UNICEF Executive Board at international level. From 2006 to 2013 she was President of Norsk Kvinnesaksforening.

Life

Origin and education

She is a granddaughter of Norwegian Foreign Minister Halvdan Koht and grew up in Oslo and Washington, DC  . She studied French, Pedagogy and Sociology at the University of Oslo and was admitted as a psychologist .

Political career

From 1971 to 1972 she was a member of the Oslo City Council. Skard was from 1973 to 1977 for the constituency Akershus member of the Norwegian parliament, the Storting . As a member of parliament, she was President of the Upper House of Parliament, the Lagting .

Diplomatic career and UN offices

Skard was Director of Women's Issues at UNESCO , based in Paris (1984–1986), Ministerial Director in the Norwegian Ministry of Development and Foreign Affairs (1986–1991), Chairwoman of the UNICEF Executive Board at the international level (1988–1989), Deputy Secretary-General of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1991–1994) and UNICEF Regional Director for West Africa and Central Africa , responsible for UNICEF's work in 23 African countries and based in Abidjan (1994–1998). She was special advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 1999-2003 and senior researcher at the Norwegian Foreign Policy Institute 2003-2011.

Women's rights

From 2006 to 2013 she was President of Norsk Kvinnesaksforening .

Fonts

• Continent of women and hope. Understand and promote development in Africa. Books on African Studies, Heidelberg 2004, ISBN 3-927198-23-4 . (also published in Norwegian, English, French and Dutch)
• Women of power. Half a century of female presidents and prime ministers worldwide. Policy Press, Bristol 2014, ISBN 978-144-731-578-0 .

Awards

• Commander , Ordre national du Lion of Senegal (1998)
• Commander -in-Chief, Order of Saint Olav (2012)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Utnevnelse til St. Olavs Orden - kongehuset.no (Norwegian)