Ministry of Children and Equality

The work of the Ministry centres on efforts to ensure

• strengthened rights, interests and safety of consumers
• a secure environment for children and young people to grow up in and the opportunity to take part in decision-making in society
• economic and social security for families
• genuine equal opportunities for men and women

Our activities concern the daily lives of most people, and the decisions we make are often of major importance for individual men, women and children.

Most of the Ministry’s budget is applied to benefits for families with children – child benefit, parental benefit and cash benefits to the parents of young children. Of the remainder of the budget, child welfare services is the single largest item.

The specialist departments of the Ministry are concerned with legislation and support schemes, planning, reports, incentive measures, guidance, and information to the general public and affected groups. The Ministry’s departments also provide support for research, experimentation and development work, and participate in international cooperation in the spheres in which they operate.

Department of Family Affairs and Gender Equality

Responsibilities:

• Family policy
• Family law
• Gender equality

The department has responsibility for the following Acts:

• Act relating to daycare institutions
• Act relating to children and parents
• Chapter 14 of the National Insurance Act (concerning parental benefit and adoption allowance)
• Act relating to child benefit
• Act relating to marriage
• Act relating to the recognition of divorces and separations obtained abroad
• Act relating to registered partnerships
• Act relating to the authority of Norwegian public officials to solemnize marriage abroad, and of foreign public officials to solemnize marriage in Norway
• Act relating to gender equality
• Act relating to cash benefits to the parents of young children

The department is responsible for earmarked grants to family care centres, crisis centres for battered women and incest victim support centres.

Affiliated agencies:

• Gender Equality Ombudsman
• Centre for Gender Equality
• National Insurance Administration (in the Ministry’s sphere of operation)

Department of Children and Youth Policy

• General children and youth policy
• Child and adolescent welfare
• Adoption

The department has responsibility for the following Acts:

• Act relating to child welfare
• Act relating to adoption
• Act relating to the Commissioner for Children

The department has responsibility for developing and coordinating the general children and youth policy including grants to children’s and youth organizations, international exchange schemes for young people and measures for young people in the larger urban communities. The department is also responsible for the development programme to strengthen the environments in which children grow up, for measures for young people in rural areas and for the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In addition to the above, the department is responsible for matters concerning child and adolescent welfare and for grants to regional child welfare development centres and to child welfare organizations, such as Norwegian Save the Children.

Subordinate and affiliated agencies:

• Commissioner for Children
• Governmental Office for Youth and Adoption
• County Committees for Social Affairs

Department of Consumer Affairs

• Consumer policy                                                                                                  
• Consumer rights
• Consumer information
• Consumer research

The department has responsibility for the following Acts:

• Act relating to control of marketing and contract terms and conditions
• Act relating to a cooling-off period in connection with certain contracts for consumer purchases etc.
• Act relating to consumer disputes
• Act relating to voluntary and compulsory debt settlement for private individuals
• Act relating to the labelling of consumer goods
• Act relating to package tours
• Act relating to the sale of time-shares in holiday homes
• Act relating to the control and hallmarking of articles of gold, silver and platinum

The department has responsibility for the development of consumer policy. As well as  researching into consumer issues and providing information for consumers, the department deals with matters concerning domestic economy, sustainable consumption and food security.

Affiliated agencies:

• Consumer Council of Norway
• Office of the Consumer Ombudsman
• National Institute for Consumer Research
• Norwegian Consumer Complaints Board
• Norwegian Market Council
• Norwegian Foundation for Environmental Labelling
• Norwegian Assay Office

Department of Planning and Administration

• Service and support for the other departments of the Ministry
• Coordinating the work of the Ministry
• Organizational and personnel development

The department has responsibility for:

• archives, documentation service
• use and development of ICT in the Ministry
• planning, budgeting, and financial management
• personnel administration and development
• internal administration
• coordination of those responsibilities of County Governors’ Offices that lie within the Ministry’s sphere of operations
• coordination of the Ministry’s research and development activities

Information Secretariat

• Strategic information planning
• Information concerning rights and responsibilities within the Ministry’s sphere of operations
• Information concerning the Minister’s policy in relation to the Ministry’s sphere of operations
• Advice to the political staff and to the Ministry’s departments concerning the use of information as an instrument
• Monitoring of the media and dealing with enquiries from the media

The Information Secretariat is responsible for:

• The Ministry’s information strategy
• Advice concerning information and assessment of  information measures
• Production of FAMILIA (magazine for the general public)
• The Ministry’s contributions to the Norwegian Government’s webserver (ODIN)
• The Ministry’s Intranet
• Press releases
• Press conferences
• Daily press cuttings

The Information Secretariat holds the main responsibility for the distribution of information from the Ministry to the media and to the public at large. The secretariat draws up overall objectives and plans for the Ministry’s information activities in accordance with the aims of the Ministry and with the Government’s information policy.

The secretariat provides short-term and long-term advice to the political staff and to the Ministry’s departments concerning the use of information as an instrument and the choice of information measures and channels in relation to target groups and messages.