Helsinki should be a great city to live and do business in. This requires light bureaucracy, smart procurement, effective national advocacy, and the development of an attractive and enjoyable urban environment across the board.
The Finnish word for “city” (kaupunki) originates from the Old Gutnish word kaupungr, meaning marketplace. A city the size of Helsinki is many things: the home of nearly 700,000 residents, a public administration organization operating with an annual budget of 6.5 billion euros, Finland’s largest employer, and an extensive infrastructure network. But at its core, a city is still a marketplace—a place where people meet, interact, work, and do business.
This is why businesses and entrepreneurs are at the very heart of Helsinki’s identity and everyday life. Public services make up only a small portion of all consumption, production, and activity in the city.
That is why only a business-friendly Helsinki can be a thriving Helsinki, and why a business-friendly Helsinki is better for everyone.
As a Member of Parliament and City Councilor, I have maintained close ties with various businesses and entrepreneurs, and as mayor, I would continue to do so.
However, words alone are not enough. Here are three key ways I would make Helsinki even more business-friendly in the future.
1. Streamlined Bureaucracy and a One-Stop City Service
One of the most common messages from businesses—especially small and new companies in need of space—is that Helsinki remains too rigid and bureaucratic. Navigating different administrative sectors separately, figuring out the right contact points, and obtaining necessary permits or decisions can take far too much time.
In the European Commission’s 2023 “Quality of Life in European Cities” survey, Helsinki received an unacceptably low score for how long it takes to handle administrative matters with the city. This needs to change.
2. Smart Public Procurement and Market Utilization
Helsinki is Finland’s largest public procurement entity, making purchases worth approximately five billion euros annually. These taxpayer funds must be used wisely, leveraging the best expertise available in the market. This means ensuring that small, medium-sized, and new businesses have fair opportunities to compete.
Procurement planning should also remain open to innovative solutions. Various innovative procurement practices and market dialogues should be actively utilized. Helsinki’s procurements are also a powerful tool for advancing climate, environmental, and sustainability goals.
3. More Effective National Advocacy
The importance of cities to Finland’s economy is still not fully understood in national politics. Even the Economic Policy Council reminded decision-makers of this in January: urbanization drives employment and productivity growth.
Among Finnish cities, Helsinki stands out as the most crucial economic hub, and its voice needs to be heard more clearly in national decision-making. Helsinki must advocate for the importance of the service economy, high expertise, and creative industries in economic policy, including taxation and business subsidies.
Current government policies on immigration, cultural funding cuts, and opposition to public transportation hit Helsinki particularly hard—just as does the planned 35-million-euro cut to the city’s social and healthcare services, imposed as a penalty for responsible financial management.
This anti-Helsinki trend must be reversed, or Finland as a whole will struggle to prosper. While advocating for better national policies is essential, Helsinki must also take independent action to address these challenges.
… And Much More
Beyond these three points, many other actions are needed to support a business-friendly environment. Transportation must be smooth for both people and business logistics. Schools and educational institutions should foster an entrepreneurial mindset. Affordable spaces must be available for startups to launch and test their business ideas.
Housing costs need to remain reasonable, and investments in urban attractiveness and livability must continue. Recruiting talent—both domestically and internationally—should be as easy as possible by ensuring smooth relocation processes for entire families. Taxation must be smart and competitive.
A business-friendly policy also benefits the city’s finances. Businesses ultimately create much of the economic wealth that is distributed through public services. Corporate tax revenue alone brings nearly half a billion euros into the city’s budget each year, and the overall economic activity generated by businesses contributes an even larger share.
A smart city makes doing business easy.
This article was translated with an AI. Please find the original from here.
