When and why is the City Strategy prepared?
The Finnish Municipalities Act requires all municipalities to have a municipal strategy. In Helsinki’s Administrative Regulations, the municipal strategy is called the City Strategy. The City Strategy establishes guidelines and priorities for the City’s operations for the next four years. It must be updated at least once a council period of office.
The City Strategy is approved by the City Council. The Helsinki City Council approved the 2025–2029 City Strategy on 27 August 2025. The City Strategy was negotiated by the parties represented in the City Council under the leadership of Mayor Daniel Sazonov. The outcome of the negotiations was announced on 26 June 2025.
Implementation monitoring of the City Strategy
The City Strategy serves as the basis for preparing the budgets for the council period of office. The implementation of the City Strategy is assessed and monitored as part of annual financial and operational monitoring as well as through the City Council's assessment discussions held in the middle and end of the council period of office, meaning in 2027 and 2029.
Progress on the measures of the City Strategy in the City's services is monitored by the City Board, committees and boards and municipal officeholders. The implementation of the City Strategy is also monitored in budget forecasts through binding objectives, other objectives and activity reporting.
Longer-term effectiveness is monitored through effectiveness indicators. More about the indicators is available on their own website.
Information on changes in the operating environment that underpin the City Strategy
The information on changes in the operating environment consolidates information on changes and phenomena affecting the services and operations of Helsinki. Up-to-date and comprehensive information on changes in the operating environment is needed to support the preparation, implementation and assessment of the City Strategy.
The information on changes in the operating environment is based on research, statistics and data describing the City's services. The information content covers the content areas of the municipal strategy required by the Municipalities Act, meaning information on the wellbeing of residents, the organisation and provision of services, service objectives, ownership policy, personnel policy, opportunities for the residents to participate and exert an influence and development of the living environment and vitality of the area.
The information on changes in the operating environment is collected on its own website (in Finnish).
Programmes and plans implementing the City Strategy
The City Strategy is implemented over the 2025–2029 council period through three programme packages: the consolidating programme packages, the renewal programmes package and the established programmes package.
The consolidating programme packages bring together existing programmes and update them where necessary to align with the strategy. The renewal programmes package is linked to the implementation of the strategic priorities that require new programmes. The established programmes package includes statutory programmes and the City’s own established programmes that are updated every council period of office.