The Social, Political and Economic Profile of Finland - Essay Example

The Social, Political and Economic Profile Of Finland I. Historical and Geographical Background Finland used to be part of Sweden during the 12th tothe 19th and an autonomous grand duchy of Russia after from 1809 until 1917 when it became an independent state (see CIA-The World Fact Book). After becoming an independent state, Finland made remarkable progress. In terms of geographical terrain, Finland is said to be a country of thousands of lakes and islands. According to Statistics Finland, this country has 187,888 lakes that are larger than 500 square miles. Statistics Finland also recorded 179,584 islands in this country. Lake Saimaa, which is the largest lake in this country, holds the record of being the fourth largest in the all of Europe (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). As to its landscape, more of the areas of Finland are flatlands with few hills. Today, this country is one of the most progressive nations in Europe. Most of the areas of Finland are covered with forest trees (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). II. Culture, People, Migration, Language, Family Structure The culture of Finland is a mixture of indigenous heritage defined by its Nordic and European culture (see CIA World Fact Book). According to CIA World Fact Book, the culture of Finland has been strongly influenced by the adjacent countries of Sweden and Russia. The traditional Karelian melodies and lyrics are said to be the primary source of inspiration for the music of Finland (see CIA World Fact Book). Accordingly, the Karelian culture is said to be the purest expression Finnic culture (see CIA World Fact Book). In the field of visual arts, handicrafts and architecture, Finland has gained a reputation for its handicrafts and industrial designs (see CIA World Fact Book). Like many countries in Europe, Finland as its share of ethnic groups. According to the CIA Work Fact Book, 93.4% of people living in Finland are Finns or the natives of Finland, 5.6% are Swede 0.5% are Russian, .03% are Estonian, 0.1% are Roma or Gypsy and 0.1% are Sami. Based on the 2009 edition of the CIA Work Fact Book, the emigration rate of Finland is at .06 migrants /1,000 population. Since majority of the people in this country are Finns, the official language in Finland is Finnish while the second official language is Swedish (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). Other languages spoken in Finland are Russian, Estonian, Finnish Romani, Finnish Sign Language and Sami language (see Statistics Finland). According to Statistics Finland, there are three Sami languages spoken in Finland. These are the Inari Sami, Northern Sami and the Skolt Sami (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). The Constitution of Finland protects in particular the rights of the Sami, Romani and Swedish-speaking Finns to cherish their culture and their language (see The Constitution of Finland). The family structure of Finland is more of the nuclear type of family than an extended family system. According to Statistic Finland, the families usually have one or two children. Both the men and the women earn money for the family but the government allows generous parental leave with income-based benefits for both parents (see Leitner, A. & Wroblewski, A., 2006). According to the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in 2007, Finland ranks fourth among nations with the best child welfare system (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/13_02_07_nn_unicef.pdf). In most cases, the children leaves home at the age of twenty-one and live in youth hostels or apartments in the city or the urban areas (see Leitner, A. & Wroblewski, A., 2006). III. Corruption and Racism Issues Finland is one of the very few countries in the world that does not have to worry about issues of corruption in government. According to Zook (2009), Finland is one of the least corrupt countries in the world. In fact, the anti-corruption policies of this country have been used by many countries around the world as model for fighting corruptions in the government (see Zook 2009). When it comes to racial discrimination, the government of Finland has exerted efforts to promote equality among people in this country. The country adopted the Non-Discrimination Act of 2004 which established Finland’s National Discrimination Tribunal. Finland also ratified the 1961 European Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (see CIA World Fact Book). IV. The Political and Economic Relationship with the European Union The political and economic relation ship between Finland and the rest of Europe has been one of cooperation and mutual benefit since the beginning. This country has been a member of the European Union from the start. It was introduced to the eurozone in the early part of the 2002 and since then, it has been using the euro as its official currency (see CIA World Fact Book). Finland is one of the strong supporters of the single currency policy of the European Union. The histories, culture, political and economic situations of Finland have influenced its attitude towards the European Union. Data from the US Department of State shows that Finland has a large share in the EU market. In 2008, the export share of Finland to Russia was at 11.6%, Sweden at 10.0% and Germany at 10% (see US State Department). The economic interests of Finland in Europe therefore made it more open to cooperation with the European Union. As a highly industrialized free market nation and its economy is one of the most robust in Europe. In fact, the economy of this nation is comparable to that of Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Belgium. The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007, Finland rank as the 17th most competitive nation in the world while the World Economic Forum 2008 index put Finland as the 6th most competitive. The largest economic driver of Finland is the service sector followed by the manufacturing and refining industries (See Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). To date, the largest industries in the country are in the field of electronics, machinery, vehicle and engineered metal products (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). The forest and chemical industries of the country also contribute to the growth of the economy of this country. Unlike many countries in Europe, Finland was not as badly hit by the global economic downturn which started in 2007 and up to the present. According to Statistics Finland, as of January 2010, consumer confidence in this country is still at 14.5% and inflation rate is at -0.2%. The unemployment rate of the country has gone slightly higher in the last two years at 7.9% but this is small compared to the double digit unemployment rates of countries like the United States (see Statistics Finland http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html). V. Political and economic Relationship Between Finland And The United States According to the Department of State of the United States government, the political and economic relationship of Finland and the United States has been smooth and cooperative since the beginning (see US State Department http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3238.htm). Following the declaration of independence of Finland in 1917, the United States was among the first countries that recognize the newly constituted government of Finland (see US State Department www.state.gov). The diplomatic relationship between these countries started in 1920 and during World War II. Despite the fact that the Finnish government became part of the Axis Powers, the ties between the Finland and the United States remained strong (see US State Department www.state.gov). In fact, the United States resisted the pressures from the Soviet Union to declare war against Finland and instead severed their diplomatic relationship. However, after the war, the two countries resumed their diplomatic exchanges and in September 10, 1954, the two countries agreed to raise their diplomatic ties to embassy level (see US State Department www.state.gov). Up to the present, the two nations maintain good political relations. According to the US Department of State, 200,000 US citizens come to Finland annually. The United States and Finland also have educational exchange programs (see US Department of State http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3238.htm). The economic and trade relationship between Finland and the United States has been quite productive. According to Finnish Customs Statistics (2006), the annual US-Finland trade totals in 2006 amounted to almost $5 billion and in 2008, the US Department of State said that its annual trade total with Finland has increased to $6 billion; making the United States the fourth largest recipient of Finland’s exported products (see US State Department http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3238.htm). The US Department of State also said that 10 of the biggest Finnish companies located in the United States have earned more than three times the value of the exports of Finland to the United States (see US State Department http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3238.htm). References UNICEF Innocenti Research Center (2007) Child Poverty in Perspective: An overview of child well-being in rich countries. Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/13_02_07_nn_unicef.pdf The Global Competitiveness Report 2007-2008. World Economic Forum. Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.weforum.org/en/initiatives/gcp/Global%20Competitiveness%20Report/index.htm. CIA-The World Fact Book (2009) Retrieved February 20, 2010 https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/docs/notesanddefs.html?countryName=Finland&countryCode=fi®ionCode=eu#2112 Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination : Finland. 28/03/96. Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/(Symbol)/b2d29ca26c3400adc12563e1004aae0f?Opendocument Finland Department of Justice. Corruption and the prevention of Corruption in Finland Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.om.fi/Satellite?blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobcol=urldata&SSURIapptype=BlobServer&SSURIcontainer=Default&SSURIsession=false&blobkey=id&blobheadervalue1=inline;%20filename=Corruption.pdf&SSURIsscontext=Satellite%20Server&blobwhere=1243795504082&blobheadername1=Content-Disposition&ssbinary=true&blobheader=application/pdf Finnish Government Handling of EU Affairs in Finland Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.valtioneuvosto.fi/eu/suomi-ja-eu/asioiden-kasittely/en.jsp Statistics Finland Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.stat.fi/index_en.html The Constitution of Finland Retrieved February 20, 2010 http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/kaannokset/1999/en19990731.pdf US Department of State http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3238.htm World Competitiveness Year Book 2007 Zook, Darren C. (2009), The Curious Case of Finland’s Clean Politics, Journal of Democracy, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 157 – 168 Read More