Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden returned this week from a four-day humanitarian mission to Indonesia, serving in her role as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme. The eldest daughter of King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia touched down just as her family faces its saddest engagement of the year: the state funeral of her beloved godfather, King Harald of Norway, set for this Wednesday, September 9, in Oslo.
© CORNELIUS POPPEThe trip began in Jakarta, where Victoria was welcomed by Rachmat Pambudy, Indonesia's Minister of National Development Planning. From there, she and State Secretary Diana Janse visited Monas, the national monument built to honor Indonesia's fight for independence, before touring an initiative in biomedical and genomic science backed by the UNDP — a project helping the country expand its capacity to track genetic variation, flag emerging diseases and move toward more personalized medical treatment.
The delegation's first day also took them to Istiqlal, Indonesia's national mosque, where the Crown Princess was received by Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar, who also serves as the country's Minister of Religious Affairs, and on to Jakarta Cathedral just across the street. Victoria and Janse walked the Friendship Tunnel connecting the two houses of worship before the day wrapped up with a dinner honoring women in leadership roles across Indonesian society.
Day two took the Crown Princess to Lombok, an island no stranger to natural disaster. There, she was briefed on how different sectors of the local community are rebuilding infrastructure in the aftermath of past catastrophes and working to build more resilient livelihoods going forward. At a secondary school built with UNDP support to withstand earthquakes, Victoria heard directly from students and staff about the construction methods behind it and spoke with pupils about disaster preparedness. She later stopped at a health center to learn about SMILE, a UNDP-funded digital health platform that gives local healthcare workers real-time visibility into medical supply stock levels.
From there, the visit turned toward conservation: a stop at a sea turtle reserve, where Victoria learned how Indonesia works to protect the endangered animals. In the village of Karang Bajo, in northern Lombok, she sat down with residents of the Bayan community — and produced the trip's most striking image in the process, photographed wearing a traditional Jong Bayan headdress: a tall, cylindrical piece woven from local textile and worn as part of the region's traditional women's dress.
© Getty ImagesVictoria is mourning a key figure in her life
But nothing on the itinerary weighed as heavily as what awaited her at home. The Swedish royal family has mourned King Harald's death deeply, Victoria most of all as his goddaughter.
She reached out to Queen Sonja and King Haakon and Queen Mette-Marit almost as soon as the news broke, with some of the most personal words she has ever offered publicly about a member of another royal house.
"King Harald was a deeply loved godfather—always welcoming and warm. He was quick to laugh and had a twinkle in his eye," she said.
"An exceptionally fine person. A role model. Some people leave a mark that time never erases. King Harald is one such person. With his warmth and presence, he had a rare ability to truly see people."
© UK Press via Getty Images
