Denmark – a knowledge society
Denmark is a small country of islands, located in Northern Europe. Denmark, which also consists of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, is a part of Scandinavia. The country has approximately 5.3 million inhabitants.
Denmark is a member of the EU, but has chosen not to take part in the monetary union and the military cooperation.
Characteristic features of Denmark are primarily the welfare system, which ensures equal rights and access to public services for all, and the democratic government. Denmark is also characterised by gender equality, freedom of speech, an active business life and high-quality research and development environments.
Danes are informal in dealing with people and put a lot of focus on their personal freedom.
The welfare system
Citizens enjoy extensive financial security. They are supported in times of sickness, unemployment and old age. Supplementary services include help with rent payment and with expenses for children. Furthermore, citizens are offered services such as day-care centres, healthcare and home care.
The principle behind the Danish welfare society is that all inhabitants have access to social benefits regardless of their social or ethnic background. This means that foreigners living in Denmark benefit from the Danish welfare system on an equal footing with Danes and may benefit from the public childcare system, the public educational system and the free public health service.
Foreigners living in Denmark describe it as a safe and peaceful country for their children to grow up in. Many emphasise the high quality of life and the opportunities for families with children. Many also appreciate the unpolluted and easily accessible natural environment they find in Denmark.
Business life
Danish business life has a leading position in relation to several different products and industries, and Denmark has one of the best research and development environments in the world. International companies take advantage of this by placing their research and development activities in Denmark or by outsourcing research assignments to Danish companies.
The knowledge intensive business life is reflected in the companies focus on competence development and in the high priority given to good research and working environments.
Expats
Highly educated foreigners generally have a positive impression of Denmark. This is evident from a survey (Til- og fravalg af Danmark, the Ministry of Research and the National Agency for Enterprise and Housing, 2003) among 1350 highly educated people from eight different countries (England, Sweden, Germany, Latvia, Poland, India, Singapore and China).
Among the positive aspects, good working conditions, high standard of living, well-functioning welfare society and high safety are mentioned.
According to another survey among 400 expatriates living in Denmark (The Expat Study, Oxford Research, 1998), more than a third mention Denmark as their preferred country in Europe in which to live and work.
Almost two thirds of the respondents are experienced expatriates who have had assignments and jobs in other nations before coming to work in Denmark. 44% of these experienced expatriates find Denmark to be a more attractive place to live than the countries of their previous assignments.
High quality of life
A majority of expatriates in Denmark find that they increase their quality of life while residing in Denmark (The Expat Study, Oxford Research, 1998). Several factors influence this conviction.
The expatriates express that they experience a very positive balance between family and work life in Denmark. There is not much traffic, little pollution, and they live closer to their work place. This means fewer hours spent in traffic jams and more time to spend with family or friends.
- 2/3 of the expatriates either agree or strongly agree that their families enjoy living in Denmark
- Almost 2/3 of the expatriates agree that Denmark is a good place to raise children
- In general, there is very high satisfaction with Denmarks recreational opportunities and with the cultural scene
- On most counts more than 2/3 of the expatriates are very satisfied or satisfied with what Denmark has to offer: recreational parks, family entertainment, nightlife, restaurants, access to sports facilities, museums, concerts and movies all come out with high satisfaction scores
- Less than 10% of the expatriates express dissatisfaction
Source: Focus on Denmark, The Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2001.
Links
www.relocare.dk
Relocare handels all aspects of relocating and supplies organisational change expertise for better integration of new employees.
www.workindk.dk
Public service from the Danish Ministery of Science, Technology and Development.
www.nyidanmark.dk
The official website for foreigners working and living in Denmark. Relocare highly recomend this website. It is full of legal, practical and useful information for expatriates.
www.relocare.dk Professional support and nice to know about relocation and integration in Denmark.
www.foreignersindenmark.dk
Foreigners in Denmark is an online community designed to facilitate intercultural communication, interaction and friendships between Danes and foreigners living in Denmark.
www.expatindenmark.com
The Danish chambers of commerce has developed this site in parthership with sponcers. The aim for this portal is to support the expat before, during and after their stay in Denmark.
www.workimport.dk
Good public website supplying lots of information for companies and foreigners seeking work in Denmark.
www.investindk.com
Invest in Denmark is an Organisation in the Danish Foreign Ministry, supporting and offering their service to foreign companies who would like to allocate their business to Denmark. The expertise help they provide covers a very broad spectrum.
www.visitcopenhagen.dk
Wonderful Copenhagen tells you exactly how wonderful it actually is. It encourages you to visit yourself, by providing lots of information and good links to explore and have fun.
www.skat.dk
SKAT is the Danish taxation department. On this site you can handle your taxation online by using a digital signature. You can find information on laws and regulations regarding taxation, as well as the latest news.
www.politi.dk
On this site you will find information about the Danish police. You can also find information about your local police, passports, driving license, laws and much more. Information is available in English, German and French.
www.degulesider.dk
The Danish version of The Yellow Pages.
www.um.dk/um_files/Denmark/kids/index.html
The Danish Foreign Ministry’s homepage for kids. An absolutely wonderful, fun, informative and interactive online cartoon story for kids.
The different cartoon figures will tell stories in French, German, Spanish and English, about Denmark, our history and all about how and who we are.
www.globalisering.dk/
Provides you with information and news on the Danish Governments strategies and future plans on globalisation.
www.stm.dk
The official site for the Danish Government, the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, and the Prime Minister's Office.
www.rejseplanen.dk
This is an online travel guide for all public transport in Denmark.
www.krak.dk
Interactive map on Denmark with travel guide and search for people and companies (like at the yellow pages).
www.cphpost.dk
The Copenhagen Post provides Danish news in English.
www.iwcc.dk
International Women’s Club in Denmark. This exclusively for international women’s club offers a great opportunity for women to meet on equal, friendly and relaxed terms.