FINLAND
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 337,030 km2; land area: 305,470 km2
Comparative area: slightly smaller than Montana
Land boundaries: 2,628 km total; Norway 729 km, Sweden 586 km,
USSR 1,313 km
Coastline: 1,126 km excluding islands and coastal indentations
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 6 nm;
Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;
Exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm;
Territorial sea: 4 nm
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
Natural resources: timber, copper, zinc, iron ore, silver
Land use: arable land 8%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures
NEGL%; forest and woodland 76%; other 16%; includes irrigated NEGL%
Environment: permanently wet ground covers about 30% of land;
population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain
Note: long boundary with USSR; Helsinki is northernmost national
capital on European continent
PEOPLE
Population: 4,991,131 (July 1991), growth rate 0.3% (1991)
Birth rate: 12 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: NEGL migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 6 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 71 years male, 80 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 1.7 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Finn(s); adjective--Finnish
Ethnic divisions: Finn, Swede, Lapp, Gypsy, Tatar
Religion: Evangelical Lutheran 89%, Greek Orthodox 1%,
none 9%, other 1%
Language: Finnish 93.5%, Swedish (both official) 6.3%; small Lapp-
and Russian-speaking minorities
Literacy: 100% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can
read and write (1980 est.)
Labor force: 2,470,000; services 38.2%, mining and manufacturing
22.7%, commerce 14.9%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 8.8%,
construction 8.0%, transportation and communications 7.2% (1989)
Organized labor: 80% of labor force
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: Republic of Finland
Type: republic
Capital: Helsinki
Administrative divisions: 12 provinces (laanit,
singular--laani); Ahvenanmaa, Hame, Keski-Suomi, Kuopio, Kymi,
Lappi, Mikkeli, Oulu, Pohjois-Karjala, Turku ja Pori, Uusimaa, Vaasa
Independence: 6 December 1917 (from Soviet Union)
Constitution: 17 July 1919
Legal system: civil law system based on Swedish law; Supreme Court
may request legislation interpreting or modifying laws; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
National holiday: Independence Day, 6 December (1917)
Exekutive branch: president, prime minister, deputy prime minister,
Council of State (Valtioneuvosto)
Legislative branch: unicameral Eduskunta
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Korkein Oikeus)
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Mauno KOIVISTO (since 27 January 1982);
Head of Government--Prime Minister Esko AHO (since 26 April 1991);
Deputy Prime Minister Ilkka KANERVA (since 26 April 1991)
Political parties and leaders:
government coalition--Center Party, Esko AHO;
National Coalition (Conservative) Party, Ilkka SUOMINEN; and
Swedish People's Party, (Johan) Ole NORRBACK;
other parties--Social Democratic Party, Pertti PAASIO;
Leftist Alliance (Communist) consisting of People's Democratic League and
Democratic Alternative, Claes ANDERSSON;
Green League, Heidi HAUTALA;
Rural Party, Heikki RIIHIJAERVI;
Finnish Christian League, Esko ALMGREN;
Liberal People's Party, Kyosti LALLUKKA
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
President--last held 31 January-1 February and 15 February
1988 (next to be held January 1994);
results--Mauno KOIVISTO 48%, Paavo VAYRYNEN 20%, Harri HOLKERI 18%;
Eduskunta--last held 17 March 1991 (next to be held March
1995);
results--Center Party 24.8%, Social Democratic Party 22.1%, National
Coalition (Conservative) Party 19.3%, Leftist Alliance (Communist)
10.1%, Green League 6.8%, Swedish People's Party 5.5%, Rural 4.8%,
Finnish Christian League 3.1%, Liberal People's Party 0.8%;
seats--(200 total) Center Party 55, Social Democratic Party 48,
National Coalition (Conservative) Party 40, Leftist Alliance (Communist)
19, Swedish People's Party 12, Green League 10, Finnish Christian League
8, Rural 7, Liberal People's Party 1
Communists: 28,000 registered members; an additional 45,000 persons
belong to People's Democratic League
Other political or pressure groups:
Finnish Communist Party-Unity, Esko-Juhani TENNILA;
Constitutional Rightist Party;
Finnish Pensioners Party;
Communist Workers Party, Timo LAHDENMAKI
Member of: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, BIS, CCC, CE, CSCE, EBRD,
ECE, EFTA, ESA (associate), FAO, G-9, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM (guest), NC, NEA, NIB, OAS
(observer), OECD, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIIMOG, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Jukka VALTASAARI; Chancery at
3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington DC 20016; telephone (202) 363-2430;
there are Finnish Consulates General in Los Angeles and New York,
and Consulates in Chicago and Houston;
US--Ambassador John G. WEINMANN; Embassy at Itainen Puistotie
14A, SF-00140, Helsinki (mailing address is APO New York 09664);
telephone 358 (0) 171931
Flag: white with a blue cross that extends 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)
ECONOMY
Overview: Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free market
economy, with per capita output nearly three-fourths the US figure.
Its main economic force is the manufacturing sector--principally
the wood, metals, and engineering industries. Trade is important, with
the export of goods representing about 30% of GDP. Except for timber and
several minerals, Finland depends on imported raw materials, energy, and
some components of manufactured goods. Because of the climate,
agricultural development is limited to maintaining self-sufficiency in
basic commodities. The economy, which experienced an average of 4.9%
annual growth between 1987 and 1989, leveled off in 1990 and is now
in a recession facing negative growth in 1991. The clearing account
system between Finland and the Soviet Union in the postwar period--mainly
Soviet oil and gas for Finnish manufactured goods--had kept Finland
isolated from world recessions; the system, however, was dismantled on
1 January 1991 in favor of hard currency trade. As a result, Finland must
increase its competitiveness in certain sectors, for example, textiles,
foodstuffs, paper, and metals, and has already begun to shift trade
westward. Finland, as a member of EFTA, is negotiating a European
Economic Area arrangement with the EC which would allow for free
movement of capital, goods, services, and labor within the organization.
GDP: $77.3 billion, per capita $15,500; real growth rate - 0.1%
(1990)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.0% (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate: 5.7% (1991 est.)
Budget: revenues $35.1 billion; expenditures $33.1 billion,
including capital expenditures of $1.4 billion (1990)
Exports: $23.3 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--timber, paper and pulp, ships, machinery, clothing and
footwear;
partners--EC 44.0% (UK 12.0%, FRG 10.8%), USSR 14.5%, Sweden 14.3%,
US 6.4%
Imports: $24.4 billion (c.i.f., 1989);
commodities--foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products,
chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn
and fabrics, fodder grains;
partners--EC 44.5% (FRG 17.3%, UK 6.6%), Sweden 13.6%, USSR 11.5%,
US 6.3%
External debt: $5.3 billion (1989)
Industrial production: growth rate - 3.0% (1991 est.); accounts
for 28% of GDP
Electricity: 13,324,000 kW capacity; 49,330 million kWh produced,
9,940 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: metal manufacturing and shipbuilding, forestry and wood
processing (pulp, paper), copper refining, foodstuffs, chemicals,
textiles, clothing
Agriculture: accounts for 8% of GNP (including forestry); livestock
production, especially dairy cattle, predominates; forestry is an
important export earner and a secondary occupation for the rural
population; main crops--cereals, sugar beets, potatoes; 85%
self-sufficient, but short of food and fodder grains; annual fish catch
about 160,000 metric tons
Economic aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $2.7
billion
Currency: markka (plural--markkaa); 1 markka (FMk) or
Finmark = 100 pennia
Exchange rates: markkaa (FMk) per US$1--3.6421 (January 1991),
3.8235 (1990), 4.2912 (1989), 4.1828 (1988), 4.3956 (1987), 5.0695
(1986), 6.1979 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 5,924 km total; Finnish State Railways (VR) operate a
total of 5,863 km 1.524-meter gauge, of which 480 km are multiple track
and 1,445 km are electrified
Highways: about 103,000 km total, including 35,000 km paved
(bituminous, concrete, bituminous-treated surface) and 38,000 km unpaved
(stabilized gravel, gravel, earth); additional 30,000 km of private
(state-subsidized) roads
Inland waterways: 6,675 km total (including Saimaa Canal); 3,700 km
suitable for steamers
Pipelines: natural gas, 580 km
Ports: Helsinki, Oulu, Pori, Rauma, Turku; 6 secondary, numerous
minor ports
Merchant marine: 83 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 807,020
GRT/831,774 DWT; includes 3 passenger, 10 short-sea passenger, 16 cargo,
1 refrigerated cargo, 23 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 14 petroleum, oils, and
lubricants (POL) tanker, 6 chemical tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 8 bulk
Civil air: 42 major transport
Airports: 160 total, 157 usable; 57 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 23 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
22 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: good service from cable and radio relay
network; 3,140,000 telephones; stations--4 AM, 42 (101 relays) FM, 79
(197 relays) TV; 2 submarine cables; satellite service via Swedish earth
stations; earth stations--2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 EUTELSAT
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Frontier Guard (including
Sea Guard)
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,313,346; 1,089,217 fit for
military service; 32,866 reach military age (17) annually
Defense expenditures: $1.1 billion, 1.5% of GDP (1989 est.)