Haku

The 11th annual Gender Equality Days (Tasa-arvopäivät) were organised on 8-9 October 2025 at the Clarion Hotel Aviapolis in Vantaa. 

Violence against children and its prevention The authorities work to prevent violence against children in many ways and in broad cooperation with various parties. The key national plans coordinated by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health incl...

Gender Equality Act promotes gender equality and prohibits gender-based discrimination In Finland, the Act on Equality between Women and Men, or the Gender Equality Act, lays down obligations to promote gender equality. The Ministry of Social Affa...

16.4.2026 | The Government proposes amendments to the Act on Child Home Care Allowances and Private Childcare Allowances. The proposal would implement the Norwegian model for child home care allowance. The proposal seeks to promote the integration and labour market position of women with an immigrant background and to increase the participation of children in early childhood education and care.

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health provides overall guidance and prepares legislation on student health care in secondary and higher education.

nordic cooperation

Gender Equality in working life Equality in working life must be promoted particularly in pay, working conditions, terms of employment, recruitment, career development, and reconciliation of work and family life. The Gender Equality Act obliges em...

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Minister of Social Affairs and Health Wille Rydman The Finns Party Minister of Social Affairs and Health Wille Rydman is responsible for all other matters covered by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, ...

Amended legislation on health checks for children and young adults Type: Press release Categories: Publication date: 22.12.2025 Request for comments: Legislative amendment would extend right of small alcohol producers to sell their products direct...

3.12.2025 | The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has published the Non-Violent Childhoods Action Plan for 2026–2033 aimed at preventing all forms of violence against children. The plan, which will be implemented at the government level, is based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Lanzarote Convention and national statutes that require all forms of violence against children to be combated.

9.4.2026 | 1 ADI-ROM(2025)26 Restricted Strasbourg, 9 March 2026 COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS ON ROMA AND TRAVELLER1 ISSUES (ADI-ROM) 13th meeting Strasbourg, 1-2 April 2026 Explanatory Memorandum Recommendation to the member States on desegregation and inclusion po...

6.6.2025 | ​​​​​​​The Baltic Pride Conference, taking place in Vilnius on 6 June, will discuss the inclusion and rights of LGBTI people. The event will be opened by State Secretary Laura Rissanen as part of Finland’s Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

2.12.2025 | Finland has ranked 8th in the Gender Equality Index for the European Union (EU). The Index measured gender equality in various domains, such as work, health and power. The data for the most recent Index is mainly from 2023 and 2024.

27.2.2024 | Tutkimussuunnitelma Leo Nyqvist 1 Digitaalisen väkivallan tunnistaminen ja siihen puuttuminen sosiaalityössä (DIGISOS) 1. Tarkoitus ja tavoitteet 1.1. Tutkimushankkeen merkitys suhteessa nykytietämykseen sekä tutkimukselliset lähtökoh- dat Lähisuh...

24.6.2024 | Throughout the month of June, we are celebrating International Pride Month. The theme of Helsinki Pride this year is ‘Peace and Hope’. We all have the right to peace. We all have the right to hope. They have been selected as this year’s theme for a good reason.

29.8.2024 | Privacy policy – Gender Equality Barometer The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has commissioned Statistics Finland to carry out a survey on gender equality in Finland. The survey will provide information about perceived equality in different...

6.9.2024 | 15 April 2024 Ministry of Social Affairs and Health policy on international and EU cooperation for 2024–2027 The policies of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health on international and EU coopera- tion for 2024–2027 guide the Ministry and its a...

2.6.2023 | SUOMEN SÄÄDÖSKOKOELMAN SOPIMUS SARJA Julkaistu Helsingissä 31 päivänä toukokuuta 2016 (Suomen säädöskokoelman n:o 398/2016) Valtioneuvoston asetus 27/2016 vammaisten henkilöiden oikeuksista tehdyn yleissopimuksen ja sen valinnaisen pöytäkir- jan v...

28.6.2024 | The Government and central labour market organisations have negotiated joint equal pay measures for the period 2024–2027. The aim of the Equal Pay Programme is to further reduce the gender pay gap. In addition to the measures set out in the Programme, there are other measures underway to reduce the pay gap.

21.12.2023 | Finland’s communicable diseases legislation is being reformed in 2023–2025. During the reform, a number of thematic workshops will be organised to give the key stakeholders an opportunity to express their views. The first workshop was held on 18 December under the theme business activities and employment.

10.12.2024 | Finland has ranked eighth in the Gender Equality Index for the European Union (EU). The position is the same as last year. The Index measures gender equality in various domains, such as work, health and power.

4.12.2017 | The Equality Act – Promoting gender equality and preventing discrimination The Equality Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender, gender identity and gender expression and obliges to promote gender equality. The Equality Act applies as ...

19.12.2018 | The Nordic region is doing well Open and Innovative Nordic Countries – Equal Opportunities to Welfare, Education, Culture and Work (“Norden 2020”) The priority project (2016 – 2018) of the Finnish presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers 2016...

9.5.2022 | 1 Research plan / Tutkimussuunnitelma Evidencing the Effectiveness of Health Social Work Assessment and Interventions Terveyssosiaalityön arvioinnin ja intervention vaikuttavuus näkyväksi (Sostyö-TerVa) 1. Aim and objectives 1.1 Significance of re...

2.6.2023 | FINLANDS FÖRFATTNINGSSAMLINGS FÖRDRAGSSERIE Utgiven i Helsingfors den 31 maj 2016 (Finlands författningssamlings nr 398/2016) Statsrådets förordning 27/2016 om sättande i kraft av konventionen om rättigheter för personer med funktionsnedsätt- ning...

3.5.2018 | SILLAT – BROAR 26-27.9.2016: CALLS FOR ACTION AND PROPOSALS NORDBUK and the Ministry of Education and Culture in Finland organized this youth conference. The main themes were young people's access to rights, social inclusion and well-being in the ...

17.9.2021 | The Government has completed its proposal for the family leave reform, and the proposal will now proceed to Parliament for consideration as decided by the Government on 16 September. The reform is scheduled to enter into force on 1 August 2022.

26.11.2019 | Non-Violent Childhoods, the new action plan for the prevention of violence against children, contains 93 measures for preventing violence against 0–17-year old children and youth. It will be implemented during 2020–2025.

11.12.2023 | The International Gender Equality Prize was awarded to the Afghan Women Skills Development Center, which works to promote and protect the rights of women in Afghanistan. The organisation does important humanitarian work to promote the safety of Afghan women.

2.12.2019 | “To ensure girls’ and women’s active and equal participation in society, the right laws and legal frameworks need to be in place.” Thomas Blomqvist, Minister for Nordic Cooperation and Equality, said in his speech at the reception of the International Gender Equality Prize award ceremony on 2nd December 2019 in Tampere, Finland.

19.12.2017 | Over the coming years, violence against women and threat of violence will be prevented through more than 40 measures. This work will be carried out in several administrative branches together with non-governmental organisations. The objectives will be achieved, for example, by developing cooperation, support services for victims and treatment programmes aimed at perpetrators as well as by collecting data and compiling statistics in a more effective manner.

15.12.2017 | he Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has granted a separate appropriation of EUR 80,000 to support the preparation and implementation of a new action programme to prevent female genital mutilation. The previous action programme covered the years 2012–2016.

9.12.2025 | Uppföljningsrapport: Nationellt handlingsprogram för FN:s konvention om rättigheter för personer med funktionsnedsättning (2020–2023) SOCIAL- OCH HÄLSOVÅRDSMINISTERIETS PUBLIKATIONER 2023:25 Uppföljningsrapport: Nationellt handlingsprogram för FN:...

25.7.2017 | In May 2017, a two-day event focusing on gender equality was organised for Roma women and men as part of the project Building a Roma Platform financed by the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the EU.

1.6.2018 | 1 Inkeri Tanhua Gender equality and Nordic welfare societies 2 Contents Gender equality and Nordic welfare societies Introduction.........................................................................................................................

27.4.2015 | Well-being through nutrition A guide for municipal decision-makers Contents Introduction..................................................................................................................................................................

15.12.2017 | The International Gender Equality Prize established by the Government of Finland was awarded on Thursday, 14 December to Angela Merkel.

20.12.2018 | Gender and Nordic welfare viability in economic crises Anita Nyberg, Gender Studies, Stockholm University * /Anita Nyberg, Gender Studies It is often said that in economic recessions, men lose comparatively more jobs than women. The reason is the ...

18.12.2020 | The Government and central labour market organisations have negotiated joint equal pay measures for the period 2020–2023. The Equal Pay Programme aims to reduce the average pay gap between women and men. The aims would be achieved through agreement and pay policies, development of pay systems, harmonising work and family life, and reducing gender segregation in working life.

21.12.2020 | The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health encourages civil society to participate in the preparation of the equality policy report by expressing views on what an equal Finland would look like.

20.12.2018 | Socially Sustainable Development & NWM Ralf Ekebom, Ministerial Adviser Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Finland * * Our Common Future 1987 Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ab...