Government and power in Finland
Who leads Finland, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary parliamentary republic (with the autonomous Åland Islands).
Who leads Finland?
- Head of state: Alexander Stubb (President of the Republic of Finland)
- Head of government: Petteri Orpo (Prime Minister of the Republic of Finland)
- Foreign minister: Elina Valtonen (Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Finland)
Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.
Governance scores
The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.
- Voice and accountability
- Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.
- Political stability and absence of violence
- Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.
- Government effectiveness
- Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.
- Regulatory quality
- Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.
- Rule of law
- Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.
- Control of corruption
- Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.
How does Finland score on voice and accountability?
Voice and accountability: 88.8 out of 100 in 2025, 3rd highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 74.2). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 89.7.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Finland score on political stability?
Political stability and absence of violence: 82.3 out of 100 in 2025, 38th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 73.5). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 85.7.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Finland score on government effectiveness?
Government effectiveness: 92.1 out of 100 in 2025, 6th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 69.4). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 91.2.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Finland score on regulatory quality?
Regulatory quality: 83.6 out of 100 in 2025, 7th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 66.2). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 88.3.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Finland score on the rule of law?
Rule of law: 91.8 out of 100 in 2025, the highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 70.8). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 92.4.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Finland score on control of corruption?
Control of corruption: 91.2 out of 100 in 2025, 2nd highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 60.7). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 91.9.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many women are in Finland's parliament?
Women held 45.5% of seats in the national parliament (single or lower chamber) in 2025, 13th highest of 184 countries with data. Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union, via the World Bank.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many of Finland's ministers are women?
Women held 61.1% of ministerial posts in 2025, 2nd highest of 190.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does the government of Finland spend?
Central government spending (expense) was 44.9% of GDP in 2023.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much tax does the government of Finland collect?
Central government tax revenue was 25.3% of GDP in 2024, 12th highest of 92.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does Finland spend on the military?
Military spending was 2.6% of GDP in 2025, 35th highest of 149 (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, via the World Bank).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow big are the armed forces of Finland?
Armed forces personnel numbered 22,000 in 2020.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow good are Finland's official statistics?
The World Bank's Statistical Performance Indicator, which scores how well a country's official statistics system works, was 90.4 out of 100 in 2024, 16th highest of 187.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many births are registered in Finland?
100.0% of births of children under 5 were registered with a civil authority (2022).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many people in Finland use the internet?
93.7% of people used the internet in 2024.
Source: World Bank · saved copyOfficial bodies that hold power in Finland
Government
- Finnish GovernmentGovernment decisions, programme documents and ministry press releases.
Parliament
- Parliament of FinlandGovernment bills, plenary minutes, committee reports and votes of the Eduskunta.
Elections
- Ministry of Justice election informationElection timetables, candidate information and rules for Finnish elections, from the Ministry of Justice.
Courts
- Supreme Court of FinlandPrecedent judgments of the highest court in civil and criminal matters.
- Supreme Administrative CourtPrecedent decisions of the highest court in administrative matters.
Public audit
- National Audit Office of FinlandAudit reports on central government finances, fiscal policy monitoring and party financing oversight.
Ombudsman
- Parliamentary OmbudsmanDecisions on complaints about authorities and inspection reports.
Lobbying register
- Transparency RegisterRegistered lobbyists and their reported contacts with Parliament and ministries, kept by the National Audit Office.
Public contracts
- Hilma public procurement noticesNational and EU procurement notices from Finnish contracting authorities.
Laws and the official gazette
- FinlexFinnish legislation, the Statute Book, treaties and case law, maintained by the Ministry of Justice.
Government below the national level
- Åland Islands (autonomous region): Elected Lagting (parliament) and government
- Wellbeing services counties (hyvinvointialueet, 21) plus the City of Helsinki: Regional councils elected (first in 2022, then 2025)
- Regional councils (maakuntien liitot, 18): Joint authorities of municipalities; members nominated by municipal councils
- Municipalities (kunnat, 309 in 2022): Municipal council elected every four years; council appoints a municipal manager or, rarely, a mayor (pormestari)
How local power works in Finland
Places in Finland
Sources
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.