Finland leads the World

The education system in Finland is considered the best in the world. To quote from Washington Post "Finns have one of the world's most generous systems of state-funded educational, medical and welfare services, from pregnancy to the end of life. They pay nothing for education at any level, including medical school or law school. Their medical care, which contributes to an infant mortality rate that is half of ours and a life expectancy greater than ours, costs relatively little. (Finns devote 7 percent of gross domestic product to health care; we spend 15 percent.) Finnish senior citizens are well cared for. Unemployment benefits are good and last, in one form or another, indefinitely."

The Finnish Report Card

Finland has largely remade itself over the last 35 years, revamping its education system, transforming its medical care structure and creating a new high-tech sector that, thanks to cell phone manufacturer Nokia, has become an international player. Today Finland is regularly cited as among the world's best in a variety of indexes and comparisons. For example:


· The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, ranks Finland's the most competitive economy in the world.


· Yale and Columbia universities rank the nations of the world in a "sustainability index" that measures a country's ability to "protect the natural environment over the next several decades." Finland is first in the rankings.


· Statistics kept by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show that Finland invests more of its gross domestic product in research and development than any country but Sweden.


· Finnish 15-year-olds score first in the industrial world on comparative tests of their academic abilities.


· According to a global survey by Transparency International, Finland is perceived as the least corrupt country in the world. (The United States is tied for 17th.)


· Finns read newspapers and take books out of libraries at rates as high or higher than all other countries.


· Finland trains more musicians, per capita, than any other country.

-- Robert G. Kaiser


Source: Washington Post


In spite of its tiny size, the nation achieved a lot and emerged as a quintessential role model for the big countries. I hope, every nation will follow the footsteps of Finland to create a highly literate society, which in turn makes the progressive nation.