Current affairs

The first-ever World Humanitarian Summit (WHS), set to take place on 23-24 May 2016 in Istanbul, is a call to action by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to reshape the global agenda for humanitarian action. It is managed by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) and implemented by the World Humanitarian Summit secretariat.

A Helsinki political reporter predicts what the Finland’s new government coalition may or may not accomplish.

Finnish Meteorological Institute Director General Petteri Taalas has been appointed the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Institute (WMO) for the term 2016-2019. WMO is the UN’s weather, sea and climate expert. The Secretary-General heads the WMO’s Secretariat, which is located in Geneva.

The government of Finland has designated Professor Petteri Taalas as candidate for the position of WMO's next Secretary-General for the term 2016–2019. He is motivated to work to provide better services for Members and their national meteorological and hydrological services (NMHS).

Finland has decided to increase its yearly core contribution to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) from EUR 3 million to EUR 3.5 million. The total amount of Finland’s core support between 2015 and 2018 will be EUR 14 million. With this, Finland will support OCHA’s work to enhance the coordination and effectiveness of humanitarian action in a context where crises are growing in scale and complexity.

United Nations' Economic Commission for Europe and The Food and Agriculture Organization organized various forest related events at the UN in Geneva to celebrate the International Day of Forests on 20 March. Organized every year, the event aims at increasing awareness of the importance of forests to people and the society. "Forests for Food – Food for Forests" emphasized synergies between the forestry sector and food industry as well as the significance of forests as a source of nutrition.

Six years ago, almost 1 in 5 five-year-olds in the Finnish city of Seinäjoki was overweight or obese. Not all schools and day care centres were providing nutritious food and sufficient physical activity. Since then, the municipality’s health department has worked with the childcare, education, nutrition, recreation and urban planning departments to ensure all day care centres and schools provide the same quality of services.

In some cases, it may be difficult to know which authorities to contact in Finland regarding a certain matter. The Public Service Info is a centralised advice service that provides assistance in finding the correct authority even for Finns residing or travelling abroad.

Finland’s 188,000 lakes offer leisure activities all year round and show how the country invests in the environment.

The Global Health Security Agenda has brought together more than 40 countries and key international organisations to collaborate. Its purpose is to improve international preparedness and the ability of health systems to function. The programme supports the implementation of the health regulations of the World Health Organisation and the veterinary standards of the World Organisation for Veterinary Health in the member states. The chairmanship of the programme passes to Finland in 2015.