3 get Father of the Year award

Sergei Silkin from Helsinki, Marko Oikarainen from Kouvola and Dan Wickholm from Sipoo got the Father of the Year award this year.

Minister of Family Affairs and Social Services Krista Kiuru handed the award over to thewinners on Wednesday, said the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health in a press release.

The Father of the Year Prize winners have promoted gender equality in family life in an exemplary manner, for example by taking family leave or otherwise taking time to take care of their children.

They have found ways of supporting their children in exceptional situations and they have also raised issues related to fatherhood through their life’s work or their activities to exert influence.

“Everyone — the father himself, the child, the couple relationship and the work community — benefits from the father’s family leave. Fathers play their most valuable role at home while their work tasks can be rearranged for the duration of their family leave. Supporting fathers in taking family leave is also an investment in the future for employers, because employees returning from their family leave are happy and more committed than before,” Kiuru said while speaking on the occasion.

The Government submitted its proposal for the family leave reform to Parliament in September.

“I consider that the reform is an important step towards a more equal division of family leaves. This is an extensive overall reform. Such reforms have not previously been carried out in Finland. One of the key objectives is to increase gender equality and the amount of care provided by fathers. We want to see a more equal division of care responsibilities between women and men. We want that family leaves will be divided more equally between both parents in families,” said Kiuru.

The Father of the Year Prize is awarded to a person who, through his own example and actions, has promoted recognition of the importance of fatherhood and thus increased its appreciation.

The aim of the Prize is to put active fatherhood on a firmer footing in people's thinking. The goal is to strengthen fatherhood, support the reconciliation of work and family life, promote the child's best interests, and boost gender equality.

The first Father of the Year Prize was given in 2006. A total of 40 fathers, including the winners in 2021, have received the Prize.