Current affairs

Are you planning to travel abroad? The Foreign Ministry’s Consular Services want to remind travellers of the importance of a passport. This letter gives tips on what to do if you lose your passport during your journey.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has issued a Decree on the Amendment of Fees for Services Produced by the Foreign Service for 2020–2022. The amendment will enter into force on 1 January 2022 and will remain in force until 31 December 2022.

In its session on 25 November 2021, the Government appointed Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Jukka Salovaara to serve as Permanent State Secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs starting on 1 May 2022.

County elections will be held in Finland on Sunday 23 January 2022. The advance voting period is from 12 to 18 January 2022 in Finland and from 12 to 15 January 2022 abroad. The advance polling stations abroad will be located in Finland's diplomatic and consular missions or their offices in 71 different countries. A total of 97 advance polling stations will be open abroad. The advance voting period in Nepal is from 12 to 13 January 2022.

The three-year term 2022-2024 is Finland’s first full membership in the Human Rights Council. Finland will continue its long-term work to promote universal human rights.

The evaluation presents the results for five Institutional Cooperation Instrument (ICI) projects implemented in four South Asian countries (Afghanistan, Bhutan, India and Nepal) since 2011.

The government proposal on the introduction of a long-term national D visa in Finland promotes labour migration and includes the preparation of a fast track pledge. According to the proposal, the national D visa would first cover specialists, growth or start-up entrepreneurs and their family members.

The Government has appointed Mikko Koivumaa as Director General of Communications at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs starting on 18 October 2021. The term of office will be five years. Koivumaa is currently Director of Communications at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.

In future, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will update its travel advice for each country individually. In our advice, we will continue to take into account the recommendations with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, issued by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, and the general security situation in the country in question.

The COVID-19 pandemic has reversed progress in the global education goals by two decades. The crisis has dropped many children out of school and deteriorated the quality of education. Finnish development cooperation in the education sector tackles the global learning crisis by promoting the quality of education. Particular attention is paid to girls and to children and youth in the most vulnerable position.