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Progress of the government action plan to combat racism The government action plan to combat racism and promote equality implements the policies set out in the equality statement issued by the Government. The selected measures are based on an asse...

12.6.2025 | On 12 June, the Government appointed Kirsti Laine-Hendolin, Master of Arts (Education), to the post of Director General of the Ministry of Education and Culture for the period from 1 September 2025 to 31 July 2030. The Director General is the head of the Ministry’s Department for Youth and Sport Policy.

5.9.2024 | On 5 September, the Government adopted a resolution on an action plan for combating racism and promoting equality. The action plan elaborates on the statement on promoting equality, gender equality and non-discrimination in Finnish society, which the Government submitted to Parliament on 31 August 2023.

19.6.2023 | The Ministry of Education and Culture and the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike) have developed a new Dialogue Card tool to help arts and culture organisations make their operations more equal and sustainable. The new dialogue cards can be ordered free of charge.

30.11.2021 | Election information clinics directed at different target groups play an important role in the Ministry of Justice’s preparations for the first county elections. The Ministry holds election clinics for central municipal election boards, county election boards and journalists alike. Information about the elections is also provided at ‘Multilingual county elections 2022’ events. The main language of the events is Finnish, but participants may also present questions in English and Swedish.

26.10.2021 | The Artists’ Association of Lapland was a scholarship recipient of the Barents Scholarship for Cultural Cooperation. The scholarship amounts to EUR 10,000. The Barents Scholarships for Cultural Cooperation were awarded on Tuesday 26 October in Tromsø, Norway. Four scholarships were awarded.

20.1.2021 | The working group set up by the Ministry of Education and Culture proposes policies and measures to enable Finland's arts and culture policy to take better account of cultural diversity based on immigration and to make arts and cultural life a more equitable and equal in the future. The working group was commissioned to focus especially on using arts and culture to strengthen the inclusion and participat...

13.2.2026 | An interim report has been published on the project implementing the Government’s Equality Statement. The report brings together information on the project’s progress between 2023 and 2026. According to the report, the work has already led to legislative reforms and increased concrete anti‑racism measures across different sectors.

10.2.2026 | The National Dialogues held in the autumn of 2025 talked about the Finnish concept of ‘sisu’. The dialogues highlighted that sisu is needed in Finland today, as the country is facing challenges such as the weakening of the service structures of the welfare state and changes in the security environment.

21.10.2025 | The Prime Minister’s Office has awarded a total of EUR 240,000 in discretionary government grants for work to combat racism in 2025–2026. The grants were available to civil society organisations representing ethnic minorities and were intended to strengthen the organisations’ core activities and develop new ways to combat racism.

7.10.2025 | Finnish teachers in lower secondary education enjoy their work, but they are experiencing more stress than before. In Finland, the share of teachers considering a career change has increased, although it remains similar to the OECD average. Trust among colleagues is strong, and collaboration between teachers has grown.

18.6.2025 | Today, the Government appointed the Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations (ETNO) for the next four-year term 2025–2029.

19.6.2024 | Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Sandra Bergqvist and representatives of cities, various organisations and young people met at a round table event on Wednesday 19 June to discuss the inclusion and leisure activities of multilingual young people. The aim of the event was to find concrete measures to increase multilingual young people’s inclusion and opportunities for leisure activities.

29.11.2023 | This autumn, the revised Labour Force Barometer focuses on the future prospects of the technology industry and the social welfare, health and wellbeing sectors. The greatest shortage of labour is in the health and social services sector, where skilled workers are needed for the care of older people, in particular. The outlook for the technology sector is expected to improve after next summer.

15.3.2022 | The secretariat of the Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations has been contacted a number of times regarding hate speech and harassment directed towards Russian speakers living in Finland. The Advisory Board condemns all racism, hate speech and other harassment against people of Russian origin, Russian speakers and people from the former Soviet Union in Finland. Adults are responsible for ensuring that there is zero tolerance for intimidation and bullying against children and young people.

The amended programme document Interreg AURORA 2021-2027 VERSION 3.0 After reallocation of Interreg NEXT Kolarctic and Interreg NEXT Karelia 1 CCI 2021TC16RFCB027 Title (Interreg VI-A) Sweden-Finland-Norway (AURORA) Version 3.0 First year 2021 Las...

10.11.2021 | Sergei Silkin from Helsinki, Marko Oikarainen from Kouvola and Dan Wickholm from Sipoo were today awarded the Father of the Year Prize. The Prize was presented by Minister of Family Affairs and Social Services Krista Kiuru.

21.5.2024 | Unofficial translation Government proposal to Parliament for an Act on Temporary Measures to Combat Instrumentalised Migration MAIN CONTENTS OF PROPOSAL The Government proposes that an act on temporary measures to combat instrumentalised migration...

17.1.2017 | Hallituskausi_2011-2015_fi-en.tmx Neuvottelutulos hallitusohjelmasta PROGRAMME OF THE FINNISH GOVERNMENT Avoin, oikeudenmukainen ja rohkea Suomi An open, fair and confident Finland Jyrki Kataisen hallituksen tavoitteena on välittävä ja menestyvä S...

17.1.2017 | Hallituskausi_2011-2015_fi-en.tmx Neuvottelutulos hallitusohjelmasta PROGRAMME OF THE FINNISH GOVERNMENT Avoin, oikeudenmukainen ja rohkea Suomi An open, fair and confident Finland Jyrki Kataisen hallituksen tavoitteena on välittävä ja menestyvä S...