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Between Sweden and Russia. Capital: Helsinki. Mostly flat, wooded, interspersed with lakes. Slightly smaller than Montana.
After World War II, the Finns transformed their economy from farm and forest to a diversified and highly industrialized largely free-market economy. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Republic of Finland was free of its agreement to remain neutral, and in 1995 it joined the European Union.
Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.
Factbook: "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."
Estimated per capita GDP:
2008 $37,200 (ranks 11th among European states, just ahead of the UK>
2007 $36,700
2006 $35,200
Unemployment rate for 2008: 6.4%
GDP annual growth rate:
2008: 1.5%
2007: 4.2%
2006: 4.9%:
Currency is the Euro.
Seventy percent of mothers with young children work, most of them full time. Its unemployment rate is at 9.2 percent. (From 2004 data)
It ranks high in social security and welfare expenditures.
In 2002, Finland bought 14.5 percent of its imports from Germany, 10.9 percent from Sweden, 9.9 percent from Russia 9.9, 5.7 from the UK, 4.3 from France and 4.2 from Denmark.
Military expenditures as a percentage of GDP: 2.0 (2005)
Gender Gap: The World Economic Forum lists Finland as fifth in the world in the elimination of a gender gap.
For 2008: deaths 10.0, births 10.39
Estimated for July 2008: 5.24 million, up from 5.20 million in 2005. Growth rate estimated for 2008: 0.112 percent per year.
Swedish, 5.6 percent. Russian, 0,5 percent.
More arriving than leaving, a net gain of 0.73 persons per 1,000 population.
Infant deaths before the age of one year per 1,000 live births, for 2008: 3.5, down from: 3.57 in 2005.
Average life expectancy at birth estimated for 2008: 78.82.
Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 0.1 percent (2003).
Health care is available to all and the responsibility of local government and include medical consultations, dental care and preventive care. Health centers exist in rural areas, in the larger urban centers employ as many as hundred of doctors and include specialized services. Most Finnish municipalities have adopted a family doctor system, with each doctor responsible for about 2000 patients. Less than 7 percent of Finland's GDP is spent on health care -- low among other European Union members. Canada spends about 9 percent, and the U.S. is said to have risen to 14 percent of GDP in 2004, up from 4.4 percent in 1950. The Finns pay out of pocket about 20 percent of the cost of their health care.
A United Nations survey in 2003 ranked Finland's water as first among 122 nations surveyed.
Finland's division of wealth is flatter than the U.S. The top 10 percent in household income for 1991 did 21.6 percent of spending for consumers goods. For the lowest 10 percent of households this was 4.2 percent. In the United States these figures for 1997 were 30.5 percent and 1.8 percent.
Finland's federal tax burden as a percent of GDP is 46.3 percent, less than only Sweden and Denmark.
In 2003, Finland spent $71.01 per capita on foreign aid, compared to $23.76 for the United States.
Like Sweden, Norway and others, Finland is also concerned with acid rain.
Finland has 0.58 persons per 1,000 population in prison, less than Switzerland's 0.78 per thousand. The U.S. has 7.1 per thousand.
Finland's divorce rate is 1.85 per thousand per year. For the U.S. this is 4.95 per thousand.
In the average number of years spent in school, Finland is second only to Norway.
Before the 2004 Olympic games, Finland led the world in per capita medals won in summer games.
A study by PISA comparing student skills in math, reading and science puts Finland in first place. South Korea is second and Canada third. From Finland came the remark that for the sake of economic survival and to compete with the low-cost economies of Asia, it was necessary to invest heavily in education and training. Finnish children learn at "their own pace" rather than being bunched together according to year. (This story appears this day on the BBC website.)
Finland has been listed in the top four.
Helsinki is not a popular place to go during the winter. A complaint on the internet describes its streets in winter having only drunks and the homeless. All of Helsinki's beautiful people are indoors keeping warm.
SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
http://www.nationmaster.com/index.php
Copyright © 2008 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.