active politics, initially in the form of a "sabbatical leave" of one year, during which he lead a study group on the EU in the 2000 fall semester at Harvard University (where he was a resident fellow at the Institute of Politics). In the 2003 election he left parliament and retired from daily politics. He then served as the president of the Finnish national innovation fund SITRA (the Finnish National Fund for Research and Development). In 2008, Aho's name was included in an opinion poll on possible presidential candidates, in which he ranked last. On 1 November 2008, Aho became Nokia's executive vice president of corporate relations and responsibility and became a member of its executive board. At the time of his rise to prime minister, he was the youngest head of government in Europe. Banks Aho became a member of the board of directors of the Russian Sberbank in 2016. He resigned from the position in February 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Cabinets Aho Cabinet See also Aho report References 1954 births Living people People from Veteli Centre Party (Finland) politicians Prime Ministers of Finland Speakers of the Parliament of Finland Members of the Parliament of Finland (1983–87) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1987–91) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1991–95) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1995–99) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1999–2003) Nokia people University of Helsinki alumni Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 1st Class Candidates for President of Finland