Grantley Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of Kingston Wharves Limited, who serves as honorary consul general for Norway, has been awarded the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit by King Harold V.

He received the honour for his outstanding service to the Kingdom of Norway. The award was presented by Ambassador John Petter Opdahl, ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to Jamaica, on February 5 at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel. With this order, Stephenson will be Commandeer of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit.

In presenting the award, Ambassador Opdahl, commended Stephenson for the impeccable manner in which he has resolved Norway's issues in Jamaica. He noted that previous ambassadors also sang the Jamaican's praises for his professionalism and efficiency.

"The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs commends Mr Stephenson on the way he has organised the consulate general in order to deal with matters in a timely manner," Ambassador Opdahl said.

Stephenson, in response, said, "I am indeed immensely humbled by the honour bestowed on me, and I thank His Majesty King Harald V of Norway, through his representative Ambassador John Petter Opdahl, for finding my work worthy of this highest honour. I am, in return, grateful to those who have been kind with their advice in my role as honorary consul. It is an honour and privilege to be of service to my country and Norway and as such, I hold this recognition most dear."

The Royal Norwegian Order of Merit (Norwegian, Den Kongelige Norske Fortjensteorden) was established by King Olav V of Norway in 1985 and is the highest non-national honour. It is the newest Nordic order and is awarded to foreigners, Norwegian citizens living abroad, Ministry of Foreign Affairs diplomats, foreign civil servants in Norway, and Norway's honorary consuls for "outstanding service in the interests of Norway".