Finland
Republic of FinlandSuomen tasavalta/
republicIndependence 6 December 1917 (from Russia)
Finland as the 2009 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 135 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
Finland was a province and then a grand duchy under Sweden from the 12th to the 19th centuries, and an autonomous grand duchy of Russia after 1809. It won its complete independence in 1917. During World War II, it was able to successfully defend its freedom and resist invasions by the Soviet Union - albeit with some loss of territory. In the subsequent half century, the Finns made a remarkable transformation from a farm/forest economy to a diversified modern industrial economy; per capita income is now among the highest in Western Europe. A member of the European Union since 1995, Finland was the only Nordic state to join the euro system at its initiation in January 1999.
Geography
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia
20 fieldsLand useshare of 338,145 sq km
Location
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia
Climate
cold temperate; potentially subarctic but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
- total:
- 2.33 cu km/yr (14%/84%/3%)
- per capita:
- 444 cu m/yr (1999)
Environment - current issues
- air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain;
- water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals;
- habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
- signed, but not ratified:
- none of the selected agreements
Geography - note
- long boundary with Russia;
- Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent;
- population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain
People
22 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2009 est.)
Per 1,000 population
Male · female
Ethnic groups(2006)
Religions(2006)
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 1.02 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.68 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.96 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Languages
Finnish 91.2% (official), Swedish 5.5% (official), other 3.3% (small Sami- and Russian-speaking minorities) (2007)
Government
Republic; President Tarja HALONEN (since 1 March 2000); Prime Minister Matti VANHANEN (since 24 June 2003)
17 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
Parliament or Eduskunta, 200 seats, elected 18 March 2007one dot, one seat
Percent of vote
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Republic of Finland
- conventional short form:
- Finland
- local long form:
- Suomen tasavalta/Republiken Finland
- local short form:
- Suomi/Finland
Capital
- name:
- Helsinki
- geographic coordinates:
- 60 10 N, 24 56 E
- time difference:
- UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
- daylight saving time:
- +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Administrative divisions
6 provinces (laanit, singular - laani); Ahvenanmaan Laani (Aland), Etela-Suomen Laani (Southern Finland), Ita-Suomen Laani (Eastern Finland), Lansi-Suomen Laani (Western Finland), Lapin Laani (Lapland), Oulun Laani
Legal system
- civil law system based on Swedish law;
- the president may request the Supreme Court to review laws;
- accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Tarja HALONEN (since 1 March 2000)
- head of government:
- Prime Minister Matti VANHANEN (since 24 June 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Jyrki KATAINEN (since 19 April 2007)
- cabinet:
- Council of State or Valtioneuvosto appointed by the president, responsible to parliament
- elections:
- president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term);
- election last held 15 January 2006 (next to be held in January 2012);
- the president appoints the prime minister and deputy prime minister from the majority party or the majority coalition after parliamentary elections and the parliament must approve the appointment;
- Prime Minister VANHANEN reelected 17 April 2007
- election results:
- percent of vote - Tarja HALONEN (SDP) 46.3%, Sauli NIINISTO (Kok) 24.1%, Matti VANHANEN (Kesk) 18.6%, Heidi HAUTALA (VIHR) 3.5%;
- a runoff election between HALONEN and NIINISTO was held 29 January 2006 - HALONEN 51.8%, NIINISTO 48.2%;
- Matti VANHANEN reelected prime minister;
- election results 121-71
note: government coalition - Kesk, KOK, VIHR, and SFP
Legislative branch
unicameral Parliament or Eduskunta (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote on a proportional basis to serve four-year terms)
- elections:
- last held 18 March 2007 (next to be held March 2011)
- election results:
- percent of vote by party - Kesk 23.1%, Kok 22.3%, SDP 21.4%, VAS 8.8%, VIHR 8.5%, KD 4.9%, SFP 4.5%, True Finns 4.1%, other 3.4%;
- seats by party - Kesk 51, Kok 50, SDP 45, VAS 17, VIHR 15, SFP 9, KD 7, True Finns 5, other 1
Political parties and leaders
- Center Party or Kesk [Matti VANHANEN];
- Christian Democrats or KD [Paivi RASANEN];
- Green Party or VIHR [Tarja CRONBERG];
- Left Alliance or VAS [Martti KORHONEN] (composed of People's Democratic League and Democratic Alternative);
- National Coalition Party (conservative) or Kok [Jyrki KATAINEN];
- Social Democratic Party or SDP [Jutta URPILAINEN];
- Swedish People's Party or SFP [Stefan WALLIN];
- True Finns [Timo SOINI]
International organization participation
ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Pekka LINTU
- chancery:
- 3301 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 298-5800
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 298-6030
- consulate(s) general:
- Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Barbara BARRETT
- embassy:
- Itainen Puistotie 14B, 00140 Helsinki
- mailing address:
- APO AE 09723
- telephone:
- [358] (9) 616250
- FAX:
- [358] (9) 6162 5800
Flag description
- white with a blue cross extending to the edges of the flag;
- the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag);
- the blue represents the thousands of lakes scattered across the country, while the white is for the snow that covers the land in winter
Economy
Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with per capita output roughly that of the UK, France, Germany, and Italy.
51 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2008 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with per capita output roughly that of the UK, France, Germany, and Italy. Its key economic sector is manufacturing - principally the wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industries. Trade is important;
Finland's ratio of exports to GDP has risen from a quarter to 37% over the past 15 years. Finland excels in high-tech exports such as mobile phones. Except for timber and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy, and some components for manufactured goods.
Because of the climate, agricultural development is limited to maintaining self-sufficiency in basic products. Forestry, an important export earner, provides a secondary occupation for the rural population. Although Finland has been one of the best performing economies within the EU in recent years and its banks and financial markets have avoided the worst of global financial crisis, the world slowdown has hit export growth and domestic demand and will serve as a brake on economic growth in 2009 and 2010.
The slowdown of construction, other investment, and exports will cause unemployment to rise. During 2009, unemployment will climb to over 8% of the labor force. Long-term challenges include the need to address a rapidly aging population and decreasing productivity that threaten competitiveness, fiscal sustainability, and economic growth.
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture and forestry 4.5%, industry 18.3%, construction 7.3%, commerce 16%, finance, insurance, and business services 14.5%, transport and communications 7%, public services 32.4% (2008)
Distribution of family income - Gini index
29.5 (2007) · 25.6 (1991) country comparison to the world: 117
Central bank discount rate
3% (31 December 2008) · 5% (31 December 2007) country comparison to the world: 95 note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal lending facility, which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro area
Stock of money
$NA (31December 2008)
$NA (31 December 2007)
note: see entry for the European Union for money supply in the euro area; the European Central Bank (ECB) controls monetary policy for the 16 members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU);
individual members of the EMU do not control the quantity of money and quasi money circulating within their own borders
Stock of domestic credit
$241.1 billion (31 December 2008) · $225.4 billion (31 December 2007) country comparison to the world: 29
Industries
metals and metal products, electronics, machinery and scientific instruments, shipbuilding, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, clothing
Current account balance
$5.518 billion (2008 est.) · $10.12 billion (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 33
Exports - commodities
electrical and optical equipment, machinery, transport equipment, paper and pulp, chemicals, basic metals; timber
Imports - commodities
foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn and fabrics, grains
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$8.346 billion (31 December 2008 est.) · $8.385 billion (31 December 2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 72
Debt - external
$339.5 billion (31 December 2008) · $314.1 billion (31 December 2007) country comparison to the world: 25
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home
$84.44 billion (31 December 2008 est.) · $88.69 billion (31 December 2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 38
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad
$116 billion (31 December 2008 est.) · $114.2 billion (31 December 2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 24
Exchange rates
euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6827 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Communications
8 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- modern system with excellent service
- domestic:
- digital fiber-optic fixed-line network and an extensive cellular network provide domestic needs
- international:
- country code - 358;
- submarine cables provide links to Estonia and Sweden;
- satellite earth stations - access to Intelsat transmission service via a Swedish satellite earth station, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions);
- note - Finland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden)
Television broadcast stations
- 120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999);
- note - on 1 September 2007, Finland began broadcasting all television signals digitally;
- analog broadcasts via cable networks were discontinued 29 February 2008
Transportation
9 fieldsMerchant marine, 98 ships by typeone square, one ship
Airports by runway lengthpaved only
Airports by runway lengthunpaved only
Networkskm
Railways
- total:
- 5,794 km
country comparison to the world: 31
- broad gauge:
- 5,794 km 1.524-m gauge (3,047 km electrified) (2008)
Roadways
- total:
- 78,141 km
country comparison to the world: 62
- paved:
- 50,914 km (includes 700 km of expressways)
- unpaved:
- 27,227 km (2009)
Waterways
7,842 km country comparison to the world: 18 note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2008)
Military
Finnish Defense Forces (FDF): Army, Navy (includes Coastal Defense Forces), Air Force (Suomen Ilmavoimat) (2007)
6 fieldsMilitary branches
Finnish Defense Forces (FDF): Army, Navy (includes Coastal Defense Forces), Air Force (Suomen Ilmavoimat) (2007)
Military service age and obligation
- 18 years of age for male voluntary and compulsory - and female voluntary - national military and nonmilitary service;
- service obligation 6-12 months;
- mandatory retirement at age 60 (2008)
Manpower available for military service
- males age 16-49:
- 1,169,910
- females age 16-49:
- 1,121,187 (2008 est.)
Transnational Issues
1 fieldDisputes - international
various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other areas ceded to the Soviet Union, but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Finland.” The World Factbook 2009. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/finland/2009.