The Cabinet of Ministers Award is presented annually to no more than six persons or organizations. The award of the Cabinet of Ministers is the highest award of the Latvian government, and it is the next highest after the Order of the Three Stars, which is awarded by the sitting President. The awards are decided by a seven-person awards committee, four of whom are current government ministers.
The most prominent of the 2024 laureates named is former President Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga. She was awarded for her significant contribution in promoting Latvia's membership in the European Union and NATO, as well as for her work in protecting the values of a democratic and legal state.
Coincidentally, on the same day the Cabinet of Ministers announced the award to Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, she was herself attending a lavish launch event at the Latvian National Opera and Ballet for a new "Baltic Awards" initiative for which she sits on the selection committee. Also in attendance and sitting on the same "Baltic Awards" committee was President of the Latvian Academy of Sciences Ivars Kalviņš – who also happens to be one of the seven members of the Cabinet of Ministers award selection committee.
Another recipient of the Cabinet of Ministers award this year is Chief of the State Border Guard, General Guntis Pujāts, who will receive the Cabinet of Ministers award this year "for his outstanding contribution to Latvia's national security in the difficult geopolitical conditions."
Baiba Rivža, president of the Latvian Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, will also receive the Latvian government's highest award for outstanding achievements in scientific work, as will the long-term director of the National Library of Latvia (from 1989 to 2024) Andris Vilks "for his outstanding contribution to the operation, development and promotion of international recognition of the National Library of Latvia."
There are only two institutional rather than personal awards: one goes to the charitable foundation "Centrs Dardedze" for its work mitigating violence against children and defending children's interests, and the publishing house "Liels un mazs" will also receive the high award for its achievements in the development of high-quality children's and young people's literature in Latvia.
The awards will be presented at a ceremony in the last week of November.
The Cabinet of Ministers Award was established in 1995, after the restoration of Latvia's independence, symbolically restoring the Motherland Award, which was established in 1937 by President Kārlis Ulmanis.
Also, on October 29, the government decided on the awarding of various Certificates of Appreciation from the Cabinet of Ministers. These are presented to express appreciation for achievements in various fields but come without a cash prize.
The video below gives a brief outline of the history of the Cabinet of Ministers Award (in Latvian).
