Norwegian Central Bank President’s Speech Disrupted by Student Protest

A speech by the President of the Norwegian Central Bank Ida Wolden Bache scheduled at the University of Oslo was abruptly interrupted by a protest organized by students. The annual address was intended to be delivered to the university’s students on Wednesday but shortly after the event commenced approximately 50 students gathered outside the university building wielding placards demanding an end to the Norwegian Government Pension Fund’s collaboration with investment companies in Israel.

The Government Pension Fund of Norway often referred to as the Oil Fund is managed by the central bank and its president is also a member of the fund’s board of directors. According to reports the organization ‘Students Supporting’ took responsibility for orchestrating this protest action.

As reported about ten minutes into the speech Wolden Bache was compelled to halt her presentation and leave the venue. Efforts by security personnel and the university president to pacify the demonstrators proved unsuccessful.

In response to the incident the President of the Norwegian Central Bank stated that the fund’s investments are made based on decisions from political authorities and within the framework of the Ministry of Finance’s mandates. In August 2025 the Government Pension Fund of Norway announced that it had divested part of its investments in Israeli companies and terminated contracts with certain Israeli investment managers. Subsequently Jens Stoltenberg Norway’s Minister of Finance emphasized that the fund should not retain assets that contribute to the conflict in Gaza.