Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen


Anne-Grete Hjelle Strøm-Erichsen is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. She served as Minister of Defence from 2005-2009 and again from 2012-2013. She also served as Minister of Health and Care Services from 2009 to 2012. In local politics, she served as the Mayor of Bergen from 1999 to 2000 and its Chief Commissioner from 2000 to 2003.

Education and career outside politics

Strøm-Erichsen was educated in EDB engineering at Bergen University College in 1974. She then studied at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology in the United States until 1981 and worked with the EDB systems at the University of Bergen until 1984. She was later senior consultant in Siemens Nixdorf from 1988 to 1991 and BDC AS from 1991 to 1995.

Political career

Strøm-Erichsen was mayor of Bergen from 1999 to 2000 and chaired its city council from 2000 to 2003. Being mayor, she was the president of the Organization of World Heritage Cities from 1999 to 2001. She also chaired the county party chapter from 1997 to 1999, and was a member of the Labour Party central committee from 2002 to 2007.
She was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Hordaland in 2005. However, in October 2005 she was appointed Minister of Defence in the Red-Green Coalition government headed by Jens Stoltenberg. Her seat in parliament was taken by Dag Ole Teigen. After the 2009 Norwegian parliamentary election, she was appointed Minister of Health and Care Services until again taking over the Ministry of Defence in 2012.
She did not seek reelection in the 2013 Norwegian parliamentary election.