Industry, Economy and Innovations

Finland comprises a large area of land, including the biggest forest reserves of Europe, an extensive inland water system and exotic northern nature. Despite being a small nation, the Finns are very active in the fields of economy, international politics, education and culture. The modern economy in Finland - as well as in other Nordic countries - is open to globalisation and has a strong public sector. In terms of structure, the Finnish economy corresponds to a typical western European industrial economy.

Over the past decade, Finland has undergone an extremely rapid transformation into a national economy driven by high technology, expertise and success in the global market. Today, the largest industrial sector is the technology industry, including electronics and electrical industry, machine and metal product industry and metal processing. Forestry also plays a major role in Finland and forests are our most important natural resource. The primary export products of Finland are electronics and electricity products, pulp and paper, machinery and devices, metal industry products, transportation equipment, timber products and chemicals. On the other hand, a lot of raw materials and energy is imported into Finland. Services account for more than two-thirds of the total production; the proportion of primary production is small.

Finland maintains a goal-oriented research and innovation policy geared toward high-quality education and research, teh creation of successful innovations, jobs and growth companies and increased welfare in society. The purpose of the policy is to maintain and strengthen Finland's position as one of the leading knowledge and competence-intensive nations in the world.