The visits from Norway to Shanghai have been numerous. The Crown Prince of Norway, eight Norwegian Ministers, eight Vice Ministers and two Standing Committees have visited Shanghai prior or during Expo. The purpose of these visits has been to develop Norway’s relationship with China, and the business center at the Norwegian Pavilion provided a suitable forum for the visitors from Norway to meet with Chinese counterparts. The visits combined with many various activities have promoted Norway in China, and thus contributed to the further development of the bilateral relationship between Norway and China.
The many concerts held during Norway Day at Expo and the Norwegian Cultural Week have enhanced the visibility of the Norwegian cultural scene in China. For instance, the school concerts made Chinese children familiar with Norwegian traditional “children songs”.
In addition to a varied cultural program, many professional seminars have been held in the business center of the pavilion. These seminars have given the participating Norwegian and Chinese researchers as well as government official’s opportunities to exchange knowledge about topics in their field of interest. The polar focus days, the welfare week and the seafood and fisheries week was among such seminars.
Between 3, 2 and 3, 4 million people visited the Norwegian Pavilion during Expo 2010 in Shanghai. The pavilion received several awards, and won the second place in the category “best design and architecture”.