Areabased partnerships: an example from Finland

1
Area-based partnerships an example from
Finland

• Erja Lindberg
• Manager of Central Uusimaa Partnership
• President of REIIES

2
Central Uusimaa
3

• 6 municipalities
• Population 160 705
• Labour market area near the capital
• KUUMA programme
• Regional Employment Strategy

4
Unemployment situation

• Unemployment rates (11/2004)
• Finland 10,9 (275 508)
• Uusimaa 7,7 (59 313)
• Central Uusimaa 5,9 (4 791)
• Average duration of unemployment
• Finland 47 weeks
• Uusimaa 51 weeks
• Jobs available
• Finland 37 100
• Uusimaa 6 757
• Central Uusimaa 402

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Central Uusimaa Partnership

• Legal form association
• Staff (6) operates as an expert team
• All individual projects are financed separately
  from different sources
• Co-operation with REIIES (Réseau Européen
  dInitiatives dIntégration Economique et
  Sociale)
• Internet sites www.kumppanuusyhdistys.net

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Main objectives

• to create joint responsibility and more positive
  attitudes to support employment
• to support the creation of new businesses,
  especially in the new areas such as culture and
  social and health services
• to create new models of co-operation to support
  employment and the fight against exclusion
• to strengthen the individual resources of the
  unemployed
• to co-ordinate as an umbrella the local
  activities targeted at local development and
  employment

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Strategic choices

• regional approach co-operation between the
  municipalities
• local co-operation and innovation -basis for all
  activities
• commitment is based on concrete action and
  interests recognised
• emphasis on (open sector) employment on free
  labour markets
• key lines of business services, culture, social
  services and health care, construction,
  industries of low productivity
• project operates as local intermediator and
  project incubator

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The Objectives of the Regional Employment Strategy

• To help us to identify our own strengths and
  weaknesses
• To get together the local employment factors and
  to strengthen their co-operation
• To define the common development ventures
• To develop new innovations in order to promote
  employment
• To maintain transnational co-operation and
  network
• To support the establishment of new firms

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The Model of Action for Regional Employment
Strategy
EMPLOYMENT FORUM


KUUMA Commission
new jobs
availability of labour
social employment

creating new jobs
securing availability
employing by and promoting
of skilled labour social
grounds entrepreneurship

(supported employment)
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Lessons learnt

• All actors should be involved as early as
  possible
• Its important to create the common rules of the
  game
• Bottom up approach is also important
• Shared vision and values are a basement for whole
  work
• A strategy paper shouldnt be the main target
  its only a beginning for co-operation