State Visit to Finland 3-5 March 2015

The last State Visit to Finland took place in August 2003. President Niinistö was in Sweden for a State Visit in April 2012.

The purpose of the visit is to inspire new bilateral political, economic and cultural cooperation, renew Swedish-Finnish networks and broaden relations with Finnish-speaking Finland.

Further aims are to raise interest in Sweden among a wider section of the population, particularly in the eastern parts of the country, and to present an image of Sweden as an attractive neighbour that can offer solutions to common challenges in areas such as climate change, energy and technological innovation.

In connection with the State Visit, Jens Spendrup, Chair of the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, and Ylva Berg, CEO of Business Sweden, will lead a Swedish delegation of companies and organisations interested in exchange with Finland.

The programme ties in with the theme of digitisation of traditional industries. The companies will be introduced to the world of Finnish start-ups and be given an opportunity for dialogue with decision-makers at the highest level of Finnish and Swedish business and political leadership.

The programme also includes an award-winning Finnish project to teach sixth-graders more about entrepreneurship and enterprise, as well as a visit to Villmanstrand in eastern Finland.

Media accreditation

Swedish media representatives need special accreditation from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs International Press Centre to be able to cover the visit in Finland. The last day to apply for accreditation is Friday 20 February 2015.

Finnish and international media are accredited through the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.