Finland 

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Background:

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 on par with Western Europe. As a member of the European Union, Finland was the only Nordic state to join the euro system at its initiation in January 1999.

Location:

Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia

Geographic coordinates:

64 00 N, 26 00 E

Area:

total: 338,145 sq km
land: 304,473 sq km
water: 33,672 sq km

Land boundaries:

total: 2,681 km
border countries: Norway 727 km, Sweden 614 km, Russia 1,340 km

Coastline:

1,250 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm (in the Gulf of Finland - 3 nm)
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm; extends to continental shelf boundary with Sweden

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

Terrain:

mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Haltiatunturi 1,328 m

Natural resources:

timber, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, limestone

Land use:

arable land: 6.54%
permanent crops: 0.02%
other: 93.44% (2005)

Irrigated land:

640 sq km (2003)

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

Geography - note:

long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain

Population:

5,231,372 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 17.1% (male 455,420/female 438,719)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 1,766,674/female 1,724,858)
65 years and over: 16.2% (male 337,257/female 508,444) (2006 est.)

Median age:

total: 41.3 years
male: 39.7 years
female: 42.8 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

0.14% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:

10.45 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:

9.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:

0.84 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

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: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 3.55 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.86 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 78.5 years
male: 74.99 years
female: 82.17 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:

1.73 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

less than 0.1% (2003 est.)

people living with HIV/AIDS:

1,500 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

less than 100 (2003 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Finn(s)
adjective: Finnish

Ethnic groups:

Finn 93.4%, Swede 5.7%, Russian 0.4%, Estonian 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Sami 0.1%

Religions:

Lutheran National Church 84.2%, Greek Orthodox in Finland 1.1%, other Christian 1.1%, other 0.1%, none 13.5% (2003)

Languages:

Finnish 92% (official), Swedish 5.6% (official), other 2.4% (small Sami- and Russian-speaking minorities) (2003)

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100% (2000 est.)

Country name:

conventional long form: Republic of Finland
conventional short form: Finland
local long form: Suomen Tasavalta
local short form: Suomi

Government type:

republic

Capital:

Helsinki

Administrative divisions:

6 provinces (laanit, singular - laani); Aland, Etela-Suomen Laani, Ita-Suomen Laani, Lansi-Suomen Laani, Lappi, Oulun Laani

Independence:

6 December 1917 (from Russia)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 6 December (1917)

Constitution:

1 March 2000

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

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

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 16 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - Kesk 24.7%, SDP 24.5%, Kok 18.5%, VAS 9.9%, VIHR 8%, KD 5.3%, SFP 4.6%; seats by party - Kesk 55, SDP 53, Kok 40, VAS 19, VIHR 14, KD 7, SFP 8, other 4

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court or Korkein Oikeus (judges appointed by the president)

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; exports equal two-fifths of GDP. Finland excels in high-tech exports, e.g., 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. Rapidly increasing integration with Western Europe - Finland was one of the 12 countries joining the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) - will dominate the economic picture over the next several years. High unemployment remains a persistent problem.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$159.7 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):

$187.5 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

2.2% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):

$30,600 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 3.1%
industry: 30.4%
services: 66.5% (2005 est.)

Labor force:

2.61 million (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture and forestry 8%, industry 22%, construction 6%, commerce 14%, finance, insurance, and business services 10%, transport and communications 8%, public services 32%

Unemployment rate:

7.9% (2005 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: 4.2%
highest 10%: 21.6% (1991)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:

26.9 (2000)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

1.2% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):

19.4% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $99.61 billion
expenditures: $97.14 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)

Public debt:

42% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:

barley, wheat, sugar beets, potatoes; dairy cattle; fish

Industries:

metals and metal products, electronics, machinery and scientific instruments, shipbuilding, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, clothing

Industrial production growth rate:

3% (2005 est.)

Electricity - production:

79.61 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:

78.94 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:

7 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:

11.9 billion kWh (2003)

Oil - production:

9,013 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:

219,700 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:

101,000 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:

318,300 bbl/day (2001)

Natural gas - consumption:

5.028 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - imports:

4.567 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Current account balance:

$5.858 billion (2005 est.)

Exports:

$67.88 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:

machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals; timber, paper, pulp (1999)

Exports - partners:

Sweden 11.1%, Germany 10.7%, Russia 8.9%, UK 7%, US 6.4%, Netherlands 5.1% (2004)

Imports:

$56.45 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities:

foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn and fabrics, grains

Imports - partners:

Germany 16.2%, Sweden 14.3%, Russia 12.8%, Netherlands 6.3%, Denmark 5.2%, UK 4.6%, France 4.3% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$13.01 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:

$211.7 billion (30 June 2005)

Economic aid - donor:

ODA, $379 million (2001)

Currency (code):

euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

Fiscal year:

calendar year

Telephones - main lines in use:

2.368 million (2004)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

4.988 million (2004)

Telephone 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; 1 submarine cable (Finland Estonia Connection); 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)

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 2, FM 186, shortwave 1 (1998)

Television broadcast stations:

120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999)

Internet country code:

.fi

Internet hosts:

1,503,976 (2005)

Internet users:

3.286 million (2005)

Airports:

148 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 76
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 27
1,524 to 2,437 m: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 23
under 914 m: 14 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:

total: 72
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 67 (2005)

Pipelines:

gas 694 km (2004)

Railways:

total: 5,851 km
broad gauge: 5,851 km 1.524-m gauge (2,400 km electrified) (2004)

Roadways:

total: 78,168 km
paved: 50,616 km (including 653 km of expressways)
unpaved: 27,552 km (2004)

Waterways:

7,842 km
note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2005)

Merchant marine:

total: 96 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,390,254 GRT/1,108,246 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 24, chemical tanker 7, container 1, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 21, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 27
foreign-owned: 5 (Norway 1, Sweden 3, US 1)
registered in other countries: 43 (The Bahamas 7, Bermuda 2, Estonia 1, Germany 2, Gibraltar 1, Luxembourg 3, Netherlands 9, Norway 4, Serbia and Montenegro 1, Sweden 11, UK 2) (2005)

Ports and terminals:

Hamina, Hanko, Helsinki, Kotka, Naantali, Pori, Porvoo, Raahe, Rauma, Turku

Military branches:

Finnish Defence Forces: Army, Navy (includes Coastal Defence Forces), Air Force (2003)

Disputes - 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