What YFC is Doing
One of YFC’s pioneer programs, that is, where ministry to the youth has recently begun, Finland YFC is excitedly and prayerfully moving forward. It is focusing on building relationships with churches, recruiting staff and volunteers and doing street evangelism as well as running a youth club.
Prayer Needs
- Guidance as contacts are made and relationships built.
- Open doors for ministry, volunteers and potential staff.
- Continued expansion of street evangelism and youth club’s ministry.
About Finland
Finland
Introduction
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. In the 21st century, the key features of Finland's modern welfare state are a high standard of education, equality promotion, and national social security system; currently challenged by an aging population and the fluctuations of an export-driven economy.
Geography
Location
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 Area: 338,145 sq km Rank: 64
Land Area: 303,815 sq km
Water Area: 34,330 sq km
Comparison: slightly smaller than Montana
Land Boundaries: 2,654 km
Bordering Countries: Norway 727 km, Sweden 614 km, Russia 1,313 km
Coastline: 1,250 km
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
Elevations
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)
Renewable Water Resources: 110 cu km (2005)
Total Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 2.33 cu km/yr (14%/84%/3%)
Freshwater Withdrawal Per Capita: 444 cu m/yr (1999)
Environment
Natural Hazards: NA
Environmental Issues: air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain; water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals; habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
Environmental 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
Geography Notes
long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain
People
Population: 5,250,275 (July 2010 est.) Rank: 112
Age Structure
0-14 years: 16.4% (male 438,425/female 422,777)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 1,773,495/female 1,732,792)
65 years and over: 16.8% (male 357,811/female 524,975) (2010 est.)
Median Age: 40.7 years
Population Growth
Growth Rate: 0.098% (2010 est.) Rank: 191
Birth Rate: 10.38 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 187
Death Rate: 10.07 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Rank: 61
Net Migration Rate: 0.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 60
Urbanization
Urban Population: 63% of total population (2008)
Rate of Urbanization: 0.8% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Life and Death
Infant Mortality Rate: 3.47 deaths/1,000 live births Rank: 216
Life Expectancy at Birth: 78.97 years Rank: 37
Fertility Rate: 1.73 children born/woman (2010 est.) Rank: 167
Health and Disease
HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate: less than 0.1% (2007 est.) Rank: 136
People living with HIV/AIDS: 2,400 (2007 est.) Rank: 136
HIV/AIDS Deaths: fewer than 100 (2003 est.) Rank: 146
Nationality and Culture
Noun: Finn(s)
Adjective: Finnish
Ethnic Groups: Finn 93.4%, Swede 5.6%, Russian 0.5%, Estonian 0.3%, Roma (Gypsy) 0.1%, Sami 0.1% (2006)
Religion: Lutheran Church of Finland 82.5%, Orthodox Church 1.1%, other Christian 1.1%, other 0.1%, none 15.1% (2006)
Languages: Finnish 91.2% (official), Swedish 5.5% (official), other 3.3% (small Sami- and Russian-speaking minorities) (2007)
Education
Literacy (Meaning, age 15 and over can read and write): 100% Male: 100% Female: 100% (2000 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education): 17 years Male: 17 years Female: 18 years (2006)
Education expenditures: 6.4% of GDP (2005) Rank: 33
Government
Country Name
Conventional Long Form: Republic of Finland
Conventional Short Form: Finland
Local Long Form: Suomen tasavalta/Republiken Finland
Local Short Form: Suomi/Finland
Government Type: republic
Capital: Helsinki Geographic Coordinates: 60 10 N, 24 56 E
Administrative divisions
20 regions (maakunnat, singular - maakunta [Finnish]; landskapen, singular - landskapet [Swedish]); Aland (Swedish), Ahvenanmaa (Finnish); Etela-Karjala (Finnish), Sodra Karelen (Swedish); Etela-Pohjanmaa (Finnish), Sodra Osterbotten (Swedish); Etela-Savo (Finnish), Sodra Savolax (Swedish); Kanta-Hame (Finnish), Egentliga Tavastland (Swedish); Ita-Uusimaa (Finnish), Ostra Nyland (Swedish); Kainuu (Finnish), Kajanaland (Swedish); Keski-Pohjanmaa (Finnish), Mellersta Osterbotten (Swedish); Keski-Suomi (Finnish), Mellersta Finland (Swedish); Kymenlaakso (Finnish), Kymmenedalen (Swedish); Lappi (Finnish), Lappland (Swedish); Paijat-Hame (Finnish), Paijanne-Tavastland (Swedish); Pirkanmaa (Finnish), Birkaland (Swedish); Osterbotten (Swedish), Pohjanmaa (Finnish); Pohjois-Karjala (Finnish), Norra Karelen (Swedish); Pohjois-Pohjanmaa (Finnish), Norra Osterbotten (Swedish); Pohjois-Savo (Finnish), Norra Savolax (Swedish); Satakunta (Finnish and Swedish); Uusimaa (Finnish), Nyland (Swedish); Varsinais-Suomi (Finnish), Egentliga Finland (Swedish)
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
Executive Branch
Chief of State: President Tarja HALONEN (since 1 March 2000)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Mari KIVINIEMI (since 22 June 2010; 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 on 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 on 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 elected by popular vote on a proportional basis to serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held on 18 March 2007 (next to be held in 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 (the constituency of Aland)
Judicial branch
general courts - deal with criminal and civil cases (include district courts, Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court or Korkein Oikeus, whose judges are appointed by the president); administrative courts
Politics
Political Parties and Leaders: Center Party or Kesk [Mari KIVINIEMI]; Christian Democrats or KD [Paivi RASANEN]; Green Party or VIHR [Anni SINNEMAKI]; Left Alliance or VAS [Paavo ARHINMAKI] (composed of People's Democratic League and Democratic Alternative); National Coalition Party or Kok [Jyrki KATAINEN] (conservative); 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, FATF, 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, MINURCAT, 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, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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
Economy Overview: Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with per capita output roughly that of Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Trade is important with exports accounting for over one third of GDP in recent years. Finland is strongly competitive in manufacturing - principally the wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industries. 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. Finland had been one of the best performing economies within the EU in recent years and its banks and financial markets avoided the worst of global financial crisis. However, the world slowdown hit exports and domestic demand hard in 2009, with Finland experiencing one of the deepest contractions in the euro zone, and will serve as a brake on economic growth in 2010. The slowdown of construction, other investment, and exports will cause unemployment to rise further from the 2009 level. The recession will leave a deep, long-lasting mark on general government finances and the debt ratio. It turned previously strong public finances into deficit within a year. In the next few years, the great challenge of economic policy will be to implement a post-recession exit strategy in which measures supporting growth will be combined with general government adjustment measures. Longer-term, Finland must address a rapidly aging population and decreasing productivity that threaten competitiveness, fiscal sustainability, and economic growth.
Gross Domestic Product
GDP (purchasing power parity): $178.8 billion (2009 est.) Rank: 56
GDP - real growth rate: -8.1% (2009 est.) Rank: 207
GDP - per capita (PPP): $34,100 (2009 est.) Rank: 36
GDP - Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 3.6% Industry: 30.3% Services: 66.1% (2009 est.)
Labor Force
Labor Force: 2.678 million (2009 est.) Rank: 107
Unemployment Rate: 8.5% (2009 est.) Rank: 98
Poverty
Population below poverty line: NA
Transnational Issues
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
