Guinea-Bissau (2004) | Finland (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos | 6 provinces (laanit, singular - laani); Aland, Etela-Suomen Laani, Ita-Suomen Laani, Lansi-Suomen Laani, Lappi, Oulun Laani |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.7% (male 288,760; female 289,975)
15-64 years: 55.4% (male 367,728; female 400,996) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,570; female 23,334) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.9% (male 449,548/female 433,253)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 1,768,996/female 1,727,143) 65 years and over: 16.4% (male 344,798/female 514,722) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish | barley, wheat, sugar beets, potatoes; dairy cattle; fish |
Airports | 28 (2003 est.) | 148 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 76
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 27 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 22 under 914 m: 15 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.) |
total: 72
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 68 (2007) |
Area | total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
total: 338,145 sq km
land: 304,473 sq km water: 33,672 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut | slightly smaller than Montana |
Background | Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIERA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war. | Finland was a province and then a grand duchy under Sweden from the 12th to the 19th centuries, and an autonomous grand duchy of Russia after 1809. It won its complete independence in 1917. During World War II, it was able to successfully defend its freedom and resist invasions by the Soviet Union - albeit with some loss of territory. In the subsequent half century, the Finns made a remarkable transformation from a farm/forest economy to a diversified modern industrial economy; per capita income is now on par with Western Europe. A member of the European Union since 1995, Finland was the only Nordic state to join the euro system at its initiation in January 1999. |
Birth rate | 38.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.42 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: $109.6 billion
expenditures: $101.8 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Bissau | name: Helsinki
geographic coordinates: 60 10 N, 24 56 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | cold temperate; potentially subarctic but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes |
Coastline | 350 km | 1,250 km |
Constitution | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 | 1 March 2000 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Guinea-Bissau
conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau local short form: Guine-Bissau former: Portuguese Guinea |
conventional long form: Republic of Finland
conventional short form: Finland local long form: Suomen tasavalta/Republiken Finland local short form: Suomi/Finland |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used | - |
Death rate | 16.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.93 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $941.5 million (2000 est.) | $251.9 billion (30 June 2006) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903 | chief of mission: Ambassador Marilyn WARE
embassy: Itainen Puistotie 14B, 00140 Helsinki mailing address: APO AE 09723 telephone: [358] (9) 616250 FAX: [358] (9) 6162 5800 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA
chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Pekka LINTU
chancery: 3301 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 298-5800 FAX: [1] (202) 298-6030 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region | various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other areas ceded to the Soviet Union, but the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $850.5 million (2005) |
Economic aid - recipient | $115.4 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in low growth in 2002-03 and dim prospects for 2004. | Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with per capita output roughly that of the UK, France, Germany, and Italy. Its key economic sector is manufacturing - principally the wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industries. Trade is important; exports equal two-fifths of GDP. Finland excels in high-tech exports, e.g., mobile phones. Except for timber and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy, and some components for manufactured goods. Because of the climate, agricultural development is limited to maintaining self-sufficiency in basic products. Forestry, an important export earner, provides a secondary occupation for the rural population. High unemployment remains a persistent problem. |
Electricity - consumption | 51.15 million kWh (2001) | 81.11 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 933 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 17.92 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 55 million kWh (2001) | 67.09 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Haltiatunturi 1,328 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing | air pollution from manufacturing and power plants contributing to acid rain; water pollution from industrial wastes, agricultural chemicals; habitat loss threatens wildlife populations |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% | Finn 93.4%, Swede 5.7%, Russian 0.4%, Estonian 0.2%, Roma (Gypsy) 0.2%, Sami 0.1% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the XOF franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003
head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government |
chief of state: President Tarja HALONEN (since 1 March 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Matti VANHANEN (since 24 June 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Jyrki KATAINEN (since 19 April 2007) cabinet: Council of State or Valtioneuvosto appointed by the president, responsible to parliament elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 15 January 2006 (next to be held in January 2012); the president appoints the prime minister and deputy prime minister from the majority party or the majority coalition after parliamentary elections and the parliament must approve the appointment; Prime Minister VANHANEN reelected 17 April 2007 election results: percent of vote - Tarja HALONEN (SDP) 46.3%, Sauli NIINISTO (Kok) 24.1%, Matti Vanhanen (Kesk) 18.6%, Heidi HAUTALA (VIHR) 3.5%; a runoff election between HALONEN and NIINISTO was held 29 January 2006 - HALONEN 51.8%, NIINISTO 48.2%; Matti VANHANEN relected prime minister; election results 121-71 note: government coalition - Kesk, SDP, and SFP |
Exports | NA (2001) | 118,300 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals; timber, paper, pulp (1999) |
Exports - partners | India 76.8%, Nigeria 12.1%, Italy 5.1% (2003) | Germany 11.3%, Sweden 10.5%, Russia 10.1%, UK 6.5%, US 6.5%, Netherlands 5.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | white with a blue cross extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.063 billion (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 2.5%
industry: 32.3% services: 65.1% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | -7% (2003 est.) | 4.9% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 00 N, 15 00 W | 64 00 N, 26 00 E |
Geography - note | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland | long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain |
Highways | total: 4,400 km
paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 22.6% (2000) |
Imports | NA (2001) | 333,400 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products | foodstuffs, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, transport equipment, iron and steel, machinery, textile yarn and fabrics, grains |
Imports - partners | Senegal 18.1%, India 14.6%, Portugal 14.6%, China 9.7%, Italy 9%, Spain 4.9% (2003) | Germany 15.6%, Russia 14%, Sweden 13.7%, Netherlands 6.6%, China 5.4%, UK 4.7%, Denmark 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) | 6 December 1917 (from Russia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.6% (1997 est.) | 3% (2006 est.) |
Industries | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks | metals and metal products, electronics, machinery and scientific instruments, shipbuilding, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, clothing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 108.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 119.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 97.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 3.52 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2002 est.) | 1.6% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | AfDB, Arctic Council, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Irrigated land | 170 sq km (1998 est.) | 640 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases) | Supreme Court or Korkein Oikeus (judges appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 480,000 (1999) | 2.65 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 82% (2000 est.) | agriculture and forestry 4.4%, industry 17.5%, construction 6%, commerce 22%, finance, insurance, and business services 12%, transport and communications 8%, public services 30.2% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
total: 2,681 km
border countries: Norway 727 km, Sweden 614 km, Russia 1,340 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.67%
permanent crops: 8.82% other: 80.51% (2001) |
arable land: 6.54%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 93.44% (2005) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages | Finnish 92% (official), Swedish 5.6% (official), other 2.4% (small Sami- and Russian-speaking minorities) (2003) |
Legal system | NA | civil law system based on Swedish law; the president may request the Supreme Court to review laws; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years); note - President YALA dissolved the National People's Assembly in November 2002, elections for a new legislature were scheduled to fall in February 2003 but were then postponed to April, then July, then September, and were last scheduled to occur in March 2004
elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2% ; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1 |
unicameral Parliament or Eduskunta (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote on a proportional basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 March 2007 (next to be held March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - Kesk 23.1%, Kok 22.3%, SDP 21.4%, VAS 8.8%, VIHR 8.5%, KD 4.9%, SFP 4.5%, True Finns 4.1%, other 3.4%; seats by party - Kesk 51, Kok 50, SDP 45, VAS 17, VIHR 15, SFP 9, KD 7, True Finns 5, other 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 46.98 years
male: 45.09 years female: 48.92 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 78.66 years
male: 75.15 years female: 82.31 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (2000 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal | Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm (in the Gulf of Finland - 3 nm)
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm; extends to continental shelf boundary with Sweden continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | none | total: 92 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,362,014 GRT/1,002,280 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 26, chemical tanker 6, container 3, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 20, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 23, vehicle carrier 2 foreign-owned: 5 (Germany 2, Norway 1, Sweden 2) registered in other countries: 43 (Bahamas 8, Germany 4, Gibraltar 3, Marshall Islands 2, Netherlands 14, Norway 1, Sweden 10, UK 1) (2007) |
Military branches | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force | Finnish Defense Forces (FDF): Army, Navy (includes coastal defense forces), Air Force (Suomen Ilmavoimat) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $8.4 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.8% (2003) | 2% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 326,864 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 185,801 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) | Independence Day, 6 December (1917) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun: Finn(s)
adjective: Finnish |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires | NA |
Natural resources | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum | timber, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, limestone |
Net migration rate | -1.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 694 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] | Center Party or Kesk [Matti VANHANEN]; Christian Democrats or KD [Paivi RASANEN]; Green Party or VIHR [Tarja CRONBERG]; Left Alliance or VAS [Martti KORHONEN] (composed of People's Democratic League and Democratic Alternative); National Coalition (conservative) Party or Kok [Jyrki KATAINEN]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Eero HEINALUOMA]; Swedish People's Party or SFP [Stefan WALLIN]; True Finns |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
Population | 1,388,363 (July 2004 est.) | 5,238,460 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.99% (2004 est.) | 0.127% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) | AM 2, FM 186, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 5,741 km
broad gauge: 5,741 km 1.524-m gauge (2,619 km electrified) (2006) |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% | Lutheran Church of Finland 84.2%, Orthodox Church 1.1%, other Christian 1.1%, other 0.1%, none 13.5% (2003) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.024 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.958 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: small system
domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245 |
general assessment: modern system with excellent service
domestic: digital fiber-optic fixed-line network and an extensive cellular network provide domestic needs international: country code - 358; submarine cables provide links to Estonia and Sweden; satellite earth stations - access to Intelsat transmission service via a Swedish satellite earth station, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Finland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,600 (2003) | 1.92 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,300 (2003) | 5.67 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | NA (1997) | 120 (plus 431 repeaters) (1999) |
Terrain | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east | mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills |
Total fertility rate | 5 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.73 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (1998) | 7% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | 4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004) | 7,842 km
note: includes Saimaa Canal system of 3,577 km; southern part leased from Russia (2006) |