The process from MDG to SDG

Bjørn-Inge Larsen
Secretary General
Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services

Global health has gained increased momentum over the last decade, not least due to the prominent role of health in the UN Millennium Development Goals. Contributing to attaining these health goals has been a priority for Norwegian governments. Dr. Larsen will, taking his own experiences in the field of global health cooperation as a starting point, reflect on what the transition from the Millennium Development Goals (2000-2015) to the new Sustainable Development Goals (2015-2030) will mean for addressing social, environmental and economic challenges in a sustainable manner at national and international level.

Bjørn-Inge Larsen is Secretary General in the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services.  He has previously been Director General of Health, leader of the Norwegian Directorate of Health and Chief Medical Officer.  He has also been Assistant Director at the National Board of Health and County Medical Officer in Vestfold and Finnmark counties.

From 2008-2009 he was chair of the Standing Committee of the WHO European Regional Committee.  From 2010-2013 he represented Norway in the WHO Executive Board.  In 2012 he was chair for formal consultation on the Global Monitoring Framework and voluntary targets for non-communicable diseases in the WHO.  He has been the leader of the National Health Sector Council for Quality and Prioritization, as well as the National Committee and the National Health Preparedness Council.  From 2013 he is chair of the OECD Health Committee.

Larsen graduated as doctor from the University of Oslo in 1986, as well as being a corporate economist with a degree from BI in Norway, and he has a master's degree in economics and public health from the University of California Berkeley from 1994.