Finland's president on Tuesday appointed Mari Kiviniemi the Nordic country's second woman prime minister following the resignation last week of second-term premier Matti Vanhanen.

The 41-year-old Kiviniemi was given the green light after parliament voted for her and President Tarja Halonen formally dissolved scandal-hit Vanhanen's second government, which has been in power since 2007.

"I have to say, I am extremely happy," Kiviniemi was quoted as saying by the Finnish news agency STT as she left the parliamentary chamber after the ballot.

Women now hold the two top posts in Finland for the second time in the country's history as Halonen continues her second presidential term.

Kiviniemi is seen as a clean-living, capable politician who was the obvious choice to replace the embattled Vanhanen as Centre Party leader, but faces criticism for her cool style and lack of charisma.

A total of 115 of Finland's 200 parliamentary members voted in favour of Kiviniemi's appointment, while 56 legislators with the left-leaning opposition voted against.

The opposition had called for early elections after Vanhanen tendered his resignation Friday as head of a four-party coalition.

Vanhanen was among the first to congratulate a smiling Kiviniemi after the vote, followed by Kiviniemi's beaming parents, according to local media.

Kiviniemi is expected to serve as prime minister until the next legislative elections, scheduled for April 2011, and the Centre Party hopes her clean image will boost ratings and help it remain in power also beyond the vote.  

She has been Finland's public administration and local government minister since 2007 and an MP since 1995.

She was also minister for foreign trade and development for six months in 2005-2006, but through her years in politics, she has kept a relatively low profile and remains fairly unfamiliar to most Finns.

Her road to the front line of Finnish politics began when Vanhanen, 54, announced unexpectedly last December he would step down as Centre Party leader and cut short his second term as prime minister due to leg surgery.

A drawn-out campaign-financing scandal surrounding Vanhanen and his party are, however, widely believed to have contributed to the decision, and Kiviniemi's untainted image helped her win the race to lead the Centre Party earlier this month.

Vanhanen, too, began his premiership amid political turmoil, taking the reins from Finland's first woman prime minister Anneli Jaeaetteenmaeki, who was in office for barely two months in 2003 before being forced out due to a scandal relating to documents on Finland's position on the war in Iraq.

Kiviniemi has her work cut out for her as head of government.

At the weekend, she headed preliminary cabinet talks on possible adjustments to the government programme, but outlined no major policy shifts, saying only she would prioritise boosting Finland's export-reliant economy, which has been hit hard by the global financial downturn.

Following the scandals of recent years, commentators also expect the new prime minister to work to return the nation's confidence in politics.

"The country yearns for political leadership," Anetro Mukka wrote in a column in leading daily Helsingin Sanomat, adding that Vanhanen's seven years as head of government had left a "confidence gap" in society.

"Governance without wise, visionary politicians is like a body without a heart," Mukka said.

Parliamentarian Tapani Toelli, 59, was appointed to replace Kiviniemi as municipalities minister and no other ministerial changes were made.