Finnish Conscription
Finnish military services
Future of the conscription
system working group
• 350,000 men reserve
• Chairman Risto Siilasmaa
• 30,000 men of age annually
• Group composition
• 79% of male population
completed training in 2009
• On a scale from 1-5
– will to defend the country 4,0
– overall rating for training time 4,0
– satisfaction with the training 3,5
– satisfaction with conscript
leaders 3,7
– satisfaction with employed
trainers 3,9
– Appointed by the chairman
and minister of defence
– No civil servants
– Critical, experienced and
entrepreneurial team
• Key principles
– Question everything
– Nothing is sacred
– Present all findings, positive and
negative
– Be concrete
2
Evaluation of the alternative
systems
1. Exceeds minimum requirements for operational
capability?
–
Relative to operational purpose
–
How to measure objectively?
2. Expense to the society in direct budgetary costs and,
more importantly, in gross economic costs tolerable?
–
How to measure indirect benefits and costs?
3. Other factors affecting the overall fit for purpose
evaluation?
–
Certain benefits and costs are impossible to measure
3
Background:
Conscription or
Professional Armed
Forces?
The Defence of
The Territory
Crisis management
Not allied
Members of NATO
40%
10%
45%
50%
39%
62%
16%
20%
The way towards
professional armed
forces
28%
40%
34%
40%
17%
1990
2000
2010
Future of the
Finnish
Defence
Cost analysis
Conscription
250,000
Selective
Conscription
Voluntary
Conscription
16%
Professional
Armed Forces
60,000
-2.7 billion
-4.9 billion
Welfare effects
No return
-8.6 billion
COST OF DEFENCE MODELS
Evaluated Dimensions
• Labour force
• Capital Costs
• Gross Domestic Product
• Tax Revenue
• Household Demand
• Total Cost for Society
Professional Armed Forces
Need for infrastructure
26,000
more
people
60,000
Conscripts
19,000
Personnel
15,000
4.9 Billion/year
2.7 Billion/year
Salaries + 1.5 Billion
Materiel + 0.4 Billion
Rents + 0.2 Billion
Operating costs + 0.1 Billion
–> + 2.2 Billion / year
THE FINANCIAL SITUATION OF
THE FINNISH MILITARY IS NOT SUSTAINABLE
2.7 Mrd€
Personnel costs +2 % / annum
Operations
and real estate
Cost increase of materiel
+4-8% / annum
2010
2015
2020
Massive aging of army materiel between 2010-2020
Future of the
Finnish
Defence
Operational capability
CONSCRIPTION <> CONSCRIPTION
Unsuccessful
Conscription
Functional
Conscription
37,5 hours working weeks
5 – 6 training days a week, no
limited working hours
Training of individuals
Producing wartime units
No measurement of
training results
Measurement of training
results against hard targets
Conscripts used for secondary
tasks (cheap labour)
Training war time units as
priority
No clear purpose
Clear purpose
(Defence of the homeland)
Conscription Training System
- Production of Wartime Units
APR MAY JUN JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT NOV DEC
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR MAY
JUN
JUL
SPECIALISTS
LEADERS
BRANCH
and JOB
TRAINING
UNIT
TRAINING
9 weeks
RESERVE
UNIT
SPECIALISTS
LEADERS
WINTER
INTAKE
In January
UNIT
TRAINING
9 weeks
BASIC TRAINING
SUMMER
INTAKE
In July
BASIC TRAINING
WINTER
INTAKE
In January
MAR
BASIC
TRAINING
JAN FEB
RESERVE
UNIT
BRANCH
and JOB
TRAINING
+ Refresher Training for Reserve Units
SPECIALISTS
LEADERS
SIZE OF THE
RESERVE
30 000 24 000 21 000
men
start
pass
17 000
allocated
Wartime
reserve
15v
250 000
10v
170 000
Future of the
Finnish
Defence
General conclusions
Dimensions
Professional Force or
Conscription
Total Cost for Society
Mission of the
Defence
Forces
Giving up conscription:
WHY?
• The mission of the Defence Forces is
changed from defence to crisis
management
• Continuous forced uncoordinated cuts in
the Defence Forces spending
• Training results not sufficient in relation
to capability requirements
• No need for big reserves
• Difficulties getting motivated conscripts
Professional vs Conscription
Professional Force
Conscription
No recruitment base
Recruitment
Limited working Hours
Effective use of the week
No reserves for defence
Reserves for defence
Crisis management tasks
Defence of the country
Higher costs
Cost-effective
Weak link to society
Positive effects on society
Future of the
Finnish
Defence
Conclusions for Finland
Participation in International
Crisis Management
Support for
other Authorities
Defence of
Finland
Meaningful and
motivating
for Conscripts
Economy
Effects on Society
23
Professional Armed Forces
Bde area of
operations 30 x 50m2
per 1 km2
Positive effects on society
-
Connects the different actors in society
-
Promotes social values, national defence will and
social peace
-
Provides young men and women with versatile skills, some of the most
significant of which include leadership training, driver training and
first aid training
-
Teaches social and group skills
-
Prevents social exclusion
-
Facilitates immigrant integration
-
Promotes public health
-
Provides data and material for research
-
Produces a military reserve that can also support other authorities
-
Produces personnel for crisis management tasks
-
Acts as a recruitment channel for the Defence Forces and other authorities.
1
The conscription
system be maintained
•
The entire male age group fit for service undergoes military
service
training
•
There are no grounds for a transition to professional forces
•
Military alliance would not have considerable impacts on the
conscription system
•
In the next few years, the Defence Forces must undergo a
structural reform, which at the same time will secure the position
of the conscription system
•
Military service remains voluntary for women
•
Voluntary military service for women is supported especially by
providing more information
2
Financial latitude is
created to avoid constant
forced cost cuts
• Investigating the possibilities of
transitioning partly to a four-month
term of service
• Introducing other reforms that
create financial latitude
Operating models
are developed further
3
•
Developing a conscript information system that provides the
Defence Forces with more information about the conscripts and
vice versa
•
Utilising the call-up events as a platform, which allows for the
individual, various authorities and actors to meet and exchange
information that benefits both the individual and the different
actors
•
Developing the initial survey and feedback systems in a way
that allows for giving open feedback and learning from good
practices
•
Developing a centralised social reservation register
4
The position of conscripts
is improved
• Improving the financial standing of conscripts
• Connecting conscription with the lifelong educational
system where credit is given for the skills acquired
during military service in civilian studies and the
working life as well as possible
• Developing different reward systems for conscripts
• Promoting healthy lifestyles among conscripts
• Implementing the "timeout" operating model in all
municipalities
5
Resources are allocated
• Supporting instructors of conscripts in
their demanding work and especially
paying attention to supporting young
instructors
• Increasing the number of the training
personnel in military units that train
conscripts
Thank you!