Finland has failed in its goal of reducing poverty, says the Finnish Federation for Social Affairs and Health (Soste), an umbrella organisation of 200 NGOs in the social affairs and health sectors.

"The situation looks bleak, and it won’t improve anytime soon," says Anna Järvinen, a senior specialist at Soste. The federation published a report on Thursday, entitled How has Finland Progressed in Reducing Poverty?.

"If the situation is not addressed, the number of low-income people in Finland will increase by approximately 26,000 people in the coming years," the report warns.

Järvinen sees developments in recent years as worrying on many counts.

"The number of people with low income and financial difficulties has risen, unemployment is at record levels and homelessness has started to increase," she tells Yle.

Knock-on effects of government budget cuts

Finland has set a national goal is to reduce the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion by 100,000 by 2030.

The baseline is 2019, when 838,000 people were at risk of poverty or social exclusion.

However, according to the latest statistics, the trend has been the opposite. As many as 958,000 people in Finland were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2024, out of a population of some 5.6 million.

"I wouldn't consider it impossible that this breaks the million mark. We could be there already," says Järvinen.

Soste cites the EU designation of being at risk of poverty or social exclusion (AROPE), which measures the number of people experiencing at least one of three risks: low income, severe material/social deprivation or very low work intensity.

In day-to-day terms, that may mean you can’t afford to pay your rent, mortgage payments or bills on time, cover unexpected expenses, have internet access or keep your home warm enough, for example.

According to Soste, the worrying development is partly due to the government’s exceptionally deep cuts to social security over the past two years.

These have included cuts to unemployment benefits, sickness benefits and housing allowances.

This year, basic social assistance has been reduced and linked to more stringent obligations and sanctions, the federation notes.

As a way to combat growing poverty, Järvinen calls for moves during the next four-year legislative term such as index adjustments to social benefits and a supplement for families with children that would be included in general support.