Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2010 | Page 18

The State has acknowledged the key
role of the metropolitan area. Upon the
completion of the Competitiveness Strategy for the Metropolitan Area, the central
government and the metropolitan cities entered into negotiations regarding the central government’s participation in the implementation of strategy’s nationally important action proposals as part of the governmental Metropolitan Policy.
Jussi Pajunen notes that the Metropolitan Policy is included on the Government Agenda for the first time ever – and
it appears that the Metropolitan Policy is
there to stay.
“Also future governments are likely
to include it on the agenda.”
As for the implementation of the first
Policy, Pajunen remarks that it is very much
a learning process, but the start does contain promise.
“There are new opportunities emerging all the time.”

Roots Run Deep
Within the past two and a half years, the
competitiveness strategy has been honed
over and debated – but the roots of the
process run considerably deeper, points
out Marketta Kokkonen.
“We’ve had cooperation for decades,
and fixed structures in place for this purpose,” she says, while admitting that now
the cooperation is, indeed, entering a new
phase:
“This is a challenge for the politicians, but also for the officials of the cities in question – the depth and intensity of
the process will be demanding.”
Juhani Paajanen agrees that the next
development phase will require new operative models:
“For example, one must come to accept that the cities are different and the roles
and tasks must be assigned accordingly,”
Paajanen comments. He adds that at present
there are 70,000 municipal employees producing services in the Metropolitan Area.
“That is quite an apparatus.”
Despite the obvious difficulties, the
mayors claim that they are undaunted by
the \