The national strategies of the countries
The Nordic Welfare Centre, together with the members of the Council of Nordic Cooperation on Disability, monitors what is happening in the national disability policy landscapes. Choose a country in the list below.
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health coordinates disability policy in Finland. All ministries and other authorities are responsible for taking the rights of persons with disabilities into account in accordance with their own areas of responsibility.
The principles of disability policy mean that persons with disabilities have the right to: equal treatment, participation and non-discrimination, as well as necessary services and support measures. The policy for the area is based on fundamental freedoms and rights, as well as human rights. Provisions on non-discrimination against persons with disabilities have been incorporated into the Finnish Constitution.
Finlands actionplan for CRPD 2023-2027: Right to social inclusion and equality: National Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2023–2027).
Vammaisfoorumi ry (Funktionrättsforum rf) – Finnish Disability Forum is a co-operation organisation of national disability organisations in Finland, representing Finnish disability organisations in national and international co-operation.
The Delegation for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, VANE, is the government’s national coordination mechanism for the CRPD. VANE coordinates drawing up the action programme. VANE has representatives of disability organisations, labour market organisations and those ministries that are important with regard to the rights of persons with disabilities.
The Human Rights Centre is an autonomous and independent expert body, whose task is to promote fundamental and human rights and to increase collaboration and the sharing of information between different actors. The Human Rights Centre promotes, protects and monitors the implementation of CRPD.
The Discrimination Ombudsman monitors rights based on disability.
The National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) promotes opportunities for people with disabilities to manage on their own through its research and development work. THL disseminates information about services, forms of assistance and benefits, by such means as its handbook for the area.
More information on services and forms of assistance in Finland.
Finnish social security system consists of benefits, allowances and services that secure citizens’ income. Social security provides income security,i.e. financial support, in life situations where a person cannot earn an adequate income with his or her own income or otherwise.
Responsibility for providing services for persons with disabilities was transferred from the municipalities and joint municipal authorities to the wellbeing services counties on 1 January 2023. Finland has 21 wellbeing services counties.
