Finland

2008 Results

Aid
What it measures

Aid quality is just as important as aid quantity, so the CDI measures gross aid as a share of GNI adjusted for various quality factors: it subtracts debt service, penalizes “tied” aid that makes recipients spend aid only on donor goods and services, rewards aid to poor but relatively uncorrupt recipients, and penalizes overloading poor governments with many small projects.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 5.1
  • Rank: 7

Finland Strengths

  • High net aid volume as a share of the economy (0.40%; rank: 8)
  • Selectivity: small share of aid to relatively less poor and less democratic governments (rank: 9)

Finland Weaknesses

  • Small amount of private charitable giving attributable to tax policy (rank by share of GDP: 18)
  • Large share of tied or partially tied aid (10%; rank: 13)

Trade

What it measures

International trade has been a force for economic development for centuries. The CDI measures trade barriers in rich countries against exports from developing countries.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 5.7
  • Rank: 6

Finland Weaknesses

  • High tariffs on agricultural products (38.7% of the value of imports; rank: 7)
  • High agricultural subsidies (equivalent to 11.2% tariff; rank: 7)

Investment
What it measures

Rich-country investment in poorer countries can transfer technologies, upgrade management and create jobs. The CDI includes a checklist of policies that support healthy investment in developing countries.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 4.9
  • Rank: 13

Finland Strengths

  • Employs foreign tax credits to prevent double taxation of corporate profits earned abroad
  • Participates in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and the Kimberley Initiative on blood diamonds

Finland Weaknesses

  • Does not screen projects for social impacts through national political risk agency
  • Political risk insurance also given to inefficient, import-substituting projects
  • Imposes some restrictions on pension fund investments in emerging markets

Migration
What it measures

The movement of people from poor to rich countries provides unskilled immigrants with jobs, income and knowledge. This increases the flow of money sent home by migrants abroad and the transfer of skills when the migrants return.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 3.2
  • Rank: 16

Finland Strengths

  • No tuition fee for foreign students

Finland Weaknesses

  • Only a small increase during the 1990s in the number of unskilled immigrants from developing countries living in Finland (rank by share of population: 14)
  • Small number of immigrants from developing countries entering Finland (rank by share of population: 18)
  • Bears small share of the burden of refugees during humanitarian crises (rank: 15)

Environment

What it measures

Rich countries use a disproportionate amount of scarce resources, and poor countries are most vulnerable to global warming and ecological deterioration, so the CDI measures the impact of policies on the global climate, fisheries and biodiversity.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 8.2
  • Rank: 1

Finland Strengths

  • Few imports of endangered species (rank: 3)
  • Greenhouse gas emissions grew little in 1996–2006 despite rapid GDP growth (average annual growth rate/PPP GDP, –5.0%; rank: 3)
  • High gas taxes ($0.86 per liter; rank: 9)
  • Low greenhouse gas emissions rate per capita (8.0 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent; rank: 5)

Security

What it measures

Since security is a prerequisite for development, the CDI rewards contributions to internationally sanctioned peacekeeping operations and forcible humanitarian interventions, rewards military protection of global sea lanes, and penalizes arms exports to poor and undemocratic governments.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 6.2
  • Rank: 5

Finland Strengths

  • Significant financial and personnel contributions to internationally sanctioned peacekeeping and humanitarian interventions over last decade (rank by share of GDP: 6)

Finland Weaknesses

  • Provides little protection of global sea lanes that are important to international trade (rank by share of GDP: 18)

Technology

What it measures

Rich countries contribute to development through the creation and dissemination of new technologies. The CDI captures this by measuring government support for R&D and penalizing strong intellectual property rights regimes that limit the dissemination of new technologies to poor countries.

Finland Overall

  • Score: 5.3
  • Rank: 7

Finland Strengths

  • High government expenditure on R&D (rank by share of GDP: 4)
  • Low share of government R&D expenditure on defense (0.3%; rank: 12)

Finland Weaknesses

  • Low tax subsidy rate to businesses for R&D (rank: 16)