Revising the Rovaniemi Ecosystem Agreement

The City of Rovaniemi coordinates the implementation of the ecosystem agreement between Rovaniemi and the state (2021–2027), which supports the region’s innovation-driven growth, competitiveness, vitality, employment, and internationalization. In the spring of 2024, the City of Rovaniemi and Business Rovaniemi initiated an interim review of the agreement to revise it. The primary goal of the interim review was to support the most impactful implementation of the ecosystem agreement and to develop its content for the remaining period from 2025 to 2027. MDI was responsible for carrying out the interim review. The objectives of the study were:

1. To form an impact model and pathways according to the focus areas of the ecosystem agreement and to draft a proposal for the focus areas of Rovaniemi’s ecosystem agreement for 2025–2027,
2. To develop an approach for identifying the most potential new growth initiatives or ecosystem themes and to identify possible new growth and ecosystem initiatives to be included in the agreement, and additionally,
3. To develop a regional cooperation model that supports the implementation of the ecosystem agreement to ensure the effectiveness of the chosen focus area measures.

The work was carried out between February and June 2024 and consisted of document and statistical analysis, interviews, and workshops. As part of the background work, interviews were conducted and insights were gathered from key business, educational institutions, higher education, and public administration actors in the Rovaniemi region.