CMI selected for all seven new MFA framework agreements

Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) is selected across all seven thematic areas in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ new framework agreements for research and analysis in foreign and development policy. The agreements cover the period 2026–2030.

CMI was ranked first in two key thematic areas: Governance, development and poverty and Democracy, gender equality and human rights, both long‑standing core strengths at the institute.

Across the remaining framework agreements, CMI was ranked among the top three suppliers, covering areas including geopolitics and security policy, conflict resolution, peacebuilding and humanitarian diplomacy, international economics, global public goods (climate, energy, environment, oceans and food systems) and emerging technologies in international politics and development.

“This underscores the institute’s strong performance across a wide range of policy‑relevant research fields. Being selected across all thematic areas shows that our high‑quality research speaks directly to the needs of Norwegian foreign and development policy,” says Espen Villanger, Director of CMI.

In its assessment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) highlighted the breadth and relevance of CMIs research environment, the quality of its peer‑reviewed research, and the institute’s ability to deliver clear, policy‑relevant analysis and recommendations.

CMI received particularly strong evaluations for the relevance of its research to current foreign and development policy challenges, the strength of its broad and multidisciplinary research teams with solid regional expertise, especially in the Global South, and for well‑structured policy briefs with concrete recommendations.