Kingdom of Sweden

A look at Sweden

Working Hours
Monday 09:30 - 16:00
Tuesday 09:30 - 16:00
Wednesday 09:30 - 16:00
Thursday 09:30 - 16:00
Friday 09:30 - 14:00
Saturday Close
Sunday Close
Sweden

Sweden is part of the Nordic region in northern Europe, together with the countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway. Sweden is large in size, small in population.

Capital

Stockholm

Population

10,551,707 people, 0.13 per cent of the world’s population

Life expectancy

Men 81.58 years, women 84.9 years

Language

Swedish (main language); and five official minority languages: Sami, Finnish, Meänkieli (Tornedalen Finnish), Yiddish and Romani Chib

Religion

The Church of Sweden is Evangelical Lutheran, but there are also many other religions and faiths in the country.

National Day

6 June

Sweden's government

Sweden is a democracy and a monarchy. The Swedish Constitution and its four fundamental laws define how the country is governed. Sweden is a member of the European Union, EU.

Form of government

Constitutional monarchy, with parliamentary democracy – political power lies with the parliament and government; the monarch has ceremonial functions

Parliament

Called ‘riksdag’ – 349 members of parliament in a single chamber

Head of state

His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf; heir to the throne is Crown Princess Victoria

Education and work in Sweden

Education is fully tax-financed in Sweden, apart from higher education for people from outside the EU/EEA area and Switzerland, who will have to pay a tuition fee. Conditions on the labour market are largely regulated through negotiations between employers and labour unions.

Education

Ten years of compulsory schooling, but most students continue to the three-year upper secondary school/sixth form/high school. Around one-third go on to higher education at universities and colleges throughout Sweden.

Working hours and holidays

Standard work week is 40 hours, minimum paid holiday allowance is 5 weeks (25 working days)

Employment rate (20–64 years)

Men: 71.0% ; women: 66.8% ; total: 69.0%

Sweden's geography and nature

Sweden is so long that its northern parts may still be covered in snow when the southern end is in bloom. More than two-thirds of the land area is covered in forest and there are nearly 100,000 lakes.

Longest north–south distance

1,572 km

Longest east–west distance:

499 km

Land area

410,000 sq km

Total area

528,447 sq km, the fifth largest country in Europe and roughly the same size as California

– Forests: 63% (69 % of the land area)

– Lakes and rivers: 9%

– Marshland: 6.5%

– Agricultural land: 7%

– Grasslands: 7%

– Urban and industrial land: 3%

– Exposed rock and mountains: 4.5%

Highest mountain

Kebnekaise (2,099 m)

Biggest lake:

Vänern (5,650 sq km)

Number of lakes larger than 100m x 100m:

95,700

Sweden's biggest cities and their population:

Stockholm: 988,943

Göteborg: 604,616

Malmö: 362,133

Number of national parks:

30

Time zone:

GMT +1

Money and trade:

The Swedish currency is the Swedish krona, SEK. In a referendum in 2003, Swedes voted no to implementing the euro, EUR.

Currency:

1 krona (SEK) = 100 öre ≈ EUR 0.095

GDP

SEK 6,208 billion (2023)

Sweden's most important export goods:

Vehicles and machines, pharmaceuticals/chemicals, electronics, minerals, wood products, energy, foods, shoes and clothes

Calling code:

+46

Internet code

.se

Source

Statistics Sweden