When the world markets are going through a tough period, success can be achieved by improving productivity and taking action to become more competitive. In the Jyväskylä Region we believe that competence, innovation and creativity will help us to make it through difficult times.
Jyväskylä is particularly strong in terms of knowledge capital. It has gained a reputation, both within and outside Finland, as a city of education. Students at Jyväskylä's high quality University of Jyväskylä, JAMK University of Applied Sciences and other institutes of further education number 30 000. Our objective is to create a general model for transforming competence into innovations, which will then be further developed into profitable business activities.
State support is available for proactive work to promote innovation, and there is a plan to increase public R&D resources to 4 per cent of GDP by 2011. Innovation funding is also being targeted at the service sector, and the emphasis in innovation policy is on customer-oriented development of products and services as well as user participation in the development process.
Development of the creative industries now occupies a high profile position in Finland's national innovation strategy. The creative industries are of major importance for Finland's economy, and their significance is still growing. At the EU level, the value of the creative industries is already greater than that of car manufacturing. In the Jyväskylä Region, creative products and solutions are being actively developed in areas such as the wellness sector. A project launched in autumn 2008 - Intelligent Business and Training Environments - supports companies that are seeking to grow and become more competitive by combining technological solutions and service conceptualization.
In Jyväskylä creativity is seen as one of the key factors in the region's future competitiveness. Creative competence forms a foundation on which new business is generated, and it helps other sectors to improve their products and services. An environment that values creativity is also one of the factors that make our region attractive. One of the ways in which creative business environments are being developed in our region is through the construction of new-generation business parks. These can provide the best possible service to the companies and people based in them.
Our vision is that by 2013, in selected areas, the Jyväskylä Region will become an internationally attractive centre for knowledge-intensive business services and technology businesses. In addition to our common vision, critical success factors for the future are strong national and international partnerships and networks, a strong sense of community, cultural capital and accessibility.
For the past 13 years, as Director of Business Development for the Jyväskylä Region and Managing Director of Jykes, I have had the opportunity to play my own part in creating the region's success story - a story based on the principles of education, competence, entrepreneurship and innovation. My own role in this work ended with my retirement on January 1, 2009. I would like to send my warmest greetings and express my thanks to all of our partners. Active collaboration with partners will continue to be one of Jyväskylä's key strategic objectives!
Ritva Nirkkonen, Managing Director of Jyväskylä Regional Development Company Jykes Ltd.