Jutta Pauliina Urpilainen is a Finnish politician. She was the first female chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Finland, which she led from 2008 to 2014.
She was the Minister of Finance of Finland from 2011 to 2014.
As of 1 December 2019, she is the Commissioner in charge of International Partnerships in the European Commission. As European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Ms Jutta Urpilainen oversees the European Commission’s work on international cooperation and sustainable development. Before joining the Commission, Ms Urpilainen served as a Member of the Finnish Parliament from 2003 to 2019. In 2008, she became the first woman leader of the Social Democratic Party of Finland. From 2011 to 2014, she served as Finland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister. During that time, she became closely involved in development issues, joining the Development Committee of the World Bank Group and IMF and chairing the Finnish National Commission on Sustainable Development. She served as the Foreign Minister’s Special Representative on Mediation (2017-19) and chaired the Finnish National Commission for UNESCO (2015-18)
European Union organizations
- European Investment Bank (EIB), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2011-2014)
- European Stability Mechanism (ESM), Member of the Board of Governors (2012-2014)[14]
International organizations
- Joint World Bank-IMF Development Committee, Member (2013-2014)
- European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2011-2014)[15]
- Nordic Investment Bank (NIB), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2011-2014)
- Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), World Bank Group, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2011-2014)
- World Bank, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2011-2014)
Corporate boards
- Veikkaus, Member of the Board of Directors (2017-2018)
Non-profit organizations
- Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), Member of the Board (since 2019)[16]
- Finnish National Opera Foundation, Member of the Board (2017-2018)
- Finnish Innovation Fund (SITRA), Member of the Supervisory Board (2017-2018)
- Finnish National Commission for UNESCO, Chair (2015-2018)
“In December, the European Commission launched the Global Gateway strategy that seeks to mobilise up to €300bn in investment between 2021 and 2027 to underpin a lasting global recovery. The European strategy focuses on boosting smart, clean and secure links in digital, energy and transport sectors to strengthen health, education and research systems. The sustainable drive for investment works for “people and the planet” to tackle the most pressing global challenges, from climate change and protecting the environment, to improving health security and boosting competitiveness and global supply chains, the EU said. Of the planned €300bn investment, the commission has committed €150bn to Africa because “we see that that’s the continent where the needs are highest”, Ms Urpilainen said.”
(source: thenationalnews.com; June 13, 2022)