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13.4.2021 | Finland's development cooperation expenditure in 2020 amounted to EUR 1 119 million. This represented 0.47 per cent of Finland's gross national income (GNI). Last year, the total amount of the exclusive ODA budget item administered by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs was EUR 708.4 million.

8.7.2021 | On Friday 9 July, the European Commission will hold a High-Level Forum on Resettlement & Refugee Protection to discuss the reception of quota refugees and ways to promote it. Finland will be represented by Minister of the Interior Maria Ohisalo.

23.8.2022 | Prime Minister Sanna Marin's speech at the annual meeting of Heads of Mission, hosted by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland on 23 August 2022.

23.8.2022 | Prime Minister Sanna Marin's speech at the annual meeting of Heads of Mission, hosted by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland on 23 August 2022.

18.5.2021 | Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend the Arctic Council Ministerial meeting on 19–20 May in Reykjavik.

19.8.2021 | A few changes will be made to the restrictions on entry at external borders based on current incidence rates. The Government adopted a decision on the matter on 19 August and the decision will enter into force on 23 August. The restrictions will continue until 19 September. However, people may still enter Finland from all countries upon presenting an approved certificate of a full vaccine course.

14.10.2021 | Restrictions on entry will be lifted for residents of the countries and regions on the EU’s green list. In addition, the Vainikkala border crossing point will open to passenger traffic. The Government adopted a decision on the matter on 14 October and the decisions will enter into force on 18 October. Other restrictions on entry at external borders will be extended until 7 November. However, peo...

26.8.2024 | Speech by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo at the Annual Meeting of Heads of Mission in Helsinki on 26 August 2024. Speech to be checked against delivery.

25.2.2022 | Finland strongly condemns Russia’s military actions in Ukraine. On 24 February, the Government decided to supplement its support to Ukraine by EUR 10 million of new funding.

19.12.2022 | The 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity ends today on 19 December in Montreal, Canada. Almost 200 states negotiated on actions to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2030 and strengthen the state of the natural environment.

3.3.2022 | On Friday 4 March 2022, Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend a meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.

5.12.2023 | Findings of the OECD’s PISA 2022 (Programme for International Student Assessment) show that while the performance of Finnish young people has deteriorated, it remains above the OECD average. PISA 2022 focused on mathematical literacy.

14.12.2021 | Finland has chaired the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) in 2021. The Chairship culminated in a Ministerial Meeting on the state and future of an open and safe internet in December, hosted by Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto.

2.12.2021 | Finland has been elected to serve as Vice Chair of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) for 2022. International IDEA is a leading intergovernmental democracy organisation, which produces background information and gives expert advice in approximately 50 countries, for example in questions related to electoral and constitution building processes. The organisation recently published its Global State of Democracy 2021 report.

2.12.2022 | The 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in Montreal, Canada on 7–19 December 2022. “The Conference in Montreal must mark a turning point in terms of halting the loss of biodiversity by 2030, somewhat in the same way as the Paris Climate Change Conference did for preventing climate crisis,” says Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Maria Ohisalo, who leads Finland’s delegation.

15.7.2021 | In line with the Government decision of 15 July, the restrictions on the opening hours of border crossing points at the Finnish-Norwegian border will be lifted on 19 July. Changes will also be made to internal and external border control. According to the decision, starting from Monday 26 July 2021, persons who are able to present a certificate of a completed and approved COVID-19 vaccine course before entry can arrive in Finland from all countries.

13.7.2022 | At their informal meeting on 13–14 July in Prague, the EU ministers responsible for the environment will prepare for the UN’s meetings on biodiversity and climate change, discuss the environmental impacts of the war in Ukraine and explore what kind expert assistance the EU can offer. State Secretary Terhi Lehtonen will represent Finland at the meeting. 

27.10.2022 | More and more countries around the world are calling their foreign policy ‘feminist’. The concept has been discussed in Finland, too. Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will convene an international conference at the House of the Estates in Helsinki in November, discussing foreign policy that promotes gender equality.

11.12.2023 | A project at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) is working on a proposal for a well-being economy steering model for Finland that would strengthen wellbeing-oriented policymaking in Finland. A workshop, organized by THL and the OECD WISE Centre on 21–22 November 2023, brought together officials from pioneering countries to discuss the functionality and application of governance practices for a well-being framework.

16.6.2022 | Executive Secretary Robert Floyd of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) is visiting Finland from 15 to 17 June at the invitation of Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto. The will includes a tour of Finland’s CTBTO monitoring network.