Helsinki’s International Strategy 2008

The international strategy makes a commitment to the long-term vision and shorter-term objectives. Helsinki’s international strategy outlines cooperation aimed at strengthening the Helsinki region as a multicultural metropolis, a Baltic Sea logistics centre, a European centre of expertise and a world-class business centre. These objectives are outlined in the Helsinki’s International Strategy 2008.

A multicultural metropolis

Helsinki will develop as a tolerant, safe, attractive and service-minded city for which multiculturalism and immigrants’ skills are a key success factor. Through its own activities the city will support diversity and social cohesion, which are vital for the city’s attractiveness. The City of Helsinki will offer work to people with many different skills. The city will promote the availability of labour for its own organization as well as businesses in the region.

A Baltic Sea logistics centre

Helsinki is a leading logistics centre in the Gulf of Finland taking advantage of the growing market in the St. Petersburg region.

St. Petersburg and Tallinn are important cooperation partners for Helsinki, which engages in broad bilateral cooperation with them. This also includes Northern Dimension projects in the field of social welfare and health, the environment and in future perhaps transport and logistics.

Helsinki’s objective is to develop cross-border transport links and increase the mobility of goods, people and innovations in the Baltic Sea region.

A European centre of expertise

Helsinki is a leader in quality basic education and research. Helsinki will continue to develop as a major centre for digital content and knowledge-intensive services for business in Europe. Helsinki’s centres of expertise will be supported in international cooperation. Regional actors will also be supported in order to attract top-level international research institutes to Helsinki.

International partners will be sought to implement projects in the innovation strategy for the Helsinki region.  The objective is also to get universities and companies involved in cross-border cooperation.

Helsinki will seek new, creative solutions to develop the city’s service production in cooperation with international partners. Helsinki and its partners can serve as a test environment and trial market for international companies.

A world-class business centre

Helsinki is a world-class business and innovation centre and a leader in sustainable development. Helsinki will invest in international marketing in carefully selected target areas. In this work Helsinki will support Greater Helsinki Promotion Ltd, which coordinates international mar-keting, according to its business strategy. Helsinki’s visibility and influence will increase by participating in global urban policy in selected organizations. More attention will be drawn to departments’ and units’ expertise in international cooperation. Departments and units will be encouraged to engage in cooperation with leading cities in their own field.

Helsinki will select strategic partners outside Europe. The basic goal of cooperation is to im-prove competitiveness. The partners that are selected must be leaders in some field and significant centres from the viewpoint of Finnish expertise, so that broad and accumulating cooperation is possible.