Kjell Magne Bondevik

Bondevik, Kjell Magne (khyĕl mägənə bōnˈdəvēk) [key], 1947–, Norwegian political leader, b. Molde. He studied at the Norway's Free Faculty of Theology and was ordained a Lutheran minister in 1979. A member of the Christian Democratic party, he served in parliament from 1973 to 2005. He was party leader from 1983 to 1995, held several cabinet positions, and was foreign minister from 1989 to 1990. Heading a center-right coalition, he was Norway's prime minister from 1997 until 2000. A year later he again became prime minister and led a center-right minority government until 2005, when a center-left coalition won the elections. After leaving office, Bondevik founded the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, and in 2006 the United Nations named him a special humanitarian envoy to Africa.


See more Encyclopedia articles on: Scandinavian History: Biographies