PH Ambassador to Norway Calls on Sør Varanger Kommune Deputy Mayor

Ambassador to Norway Jocelyn Batoon-Garcia (middle) with Deputy Mayor Lena Bergeng (right) and Councilor Nina Bordi Øvergaard (left). (Oslo PE photo)

OSLO 26 June 2019 – In a visit to the Filipino community in Kirkenes, Ambassador to Norway Jocelyn Batoon-Garcia paid a courtesy call on Deputy Mayor Lena Bergeng of the Sør Varanger Kommune in Norway on 26 June 2019.

Ambassador Batoon-Garcia expressed appreciation for the Kommune’s efforts and opportunities to welcome the Filipinos in Sør Varanger.

Deputy Mayor Bergeng said that the Sør Varanger community is likewise thankful for the contributions of the Filipino community. As leader of the Kommune, she has not heard of any problems involving Filipinos.

The Deputy Mayor mentioned that the first Filipino nurse named Mariela Sibayan settled in Sør Varanger 40 years ago, and that most of the Filipinos residing in the Sør Varanger and Kirkenes are in the health sector.

Kirkenes is the capital of the municipality of Sør-Varanger, Finnmark county. Kirkenes is located around 400 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, and is known as the capital of the Barents Region. END

For more information, visit https://www.oslope.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHinNorway/.