Key Facts and Figures

Population: 5.3 million. Almost two-thirds live in urban areas and one-third in rural areas.

Area: At 338,000 sq. km, Finland is slightly smaller than Germany or Japan. Finland shares land borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east and Norway to the north while Estonia lies to its south. Finland is strategically positioned in the expanding markets of Northern Europe.

Capital: Helsinki (1.0 million residents in the metropolitan area)

Language: Finland has two official languages: Finnish (92 percent) and Swedish (six percent). About 40,000 people speak Russian and 1,700 speak Sami, a language of the native population in the north.

Religion: There are two state churches -- the Evangelical Lutheran (82 percent of population) and Finnish Orthodox (about one percent).

Government: Finland is a republic. Under a new constitution which took effect in 2000, parliament has taken on greater powers at the expense of the presidency, which used to have overall responsibility for foreign affairs. As of January 2008, Finland is comprised of 415 municipalities, self-governed by their residents. According to Transparency International, Finland is the least corrupt country in the world.

President: Tarja Halonen, a former SDP foreign minister, was elected as the country's first woman president in 2000 and re-elected for another six-year term in January 2006.

Economy: According to the World Economic Forum, (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009, Finland is one of the most competitive economies in the world with a GDP growth forecast of 2.8percent in 2008 and a 26percent corporate tax rate. Finland is also ranked number three globally in R&D spending per capita and best in the Environmental Sustainability Index by the WEF. Finland has been a member of the European Union (EU) since 1995 and is the only Euro country in Northern Europe.

Currency: Finland was a founding member of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and introduced the Euro into use in 2002. Finland is the only Nordic country in the euro currency area.

Education: The significant focus that Finland has placed on higher education and training over recent decades has provided the workforce with the skills needed to adapt rapidly to a changing environment and has laid the ground for their high levels of technological adoption and innovation in recent years. The country is ranked as having Europe's top educational system, according to IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2006.

Behind the impressive numbers is a well-balanced and dynamic society, which is the perfect basis for highly-favorable business environment for local and non-Finnish companies and organizations alike. Today, foreign-owned companies account for more than 20 percent of corporate turnover in Finland, and their number is constantly growing.