How to modernise the forest sector is the single issue that worries me most.The forest sector was the key element in the creation of our affluent welfare state.For a very long time,forest industry exports accounted for 30 to 50 per cent of the aggregate exports and were the principal source of foreign currency input and revenue.Major investments were made in the forest industry from the I960'to the 1990s: in new products and paper grades,and a more efficient sawmill industry.These investments created the prerequisites for the forest companies'success,growth,and international operations.In the last decade,this development was reversed,and the forest sector's share of the gross national product and employment opportunities decreased sharply.Today,the forest sector accounts for 16 to 18 per cent of the country's aggregate exports and employs approximately four per cent of the workforce.Investments in production capacity are now targeted outside Finland,and RD investments remain at a very modest level.Over the last few years,also overall consumption of wood has begun to stall.
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