Bridging collaboration between Finland and Japan

Helsinki Partners and Fukuoka Directive Council are renewing their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The agreement continues the collaboration that started with the signing of the original agreement at the startup event Slush in Helsinki, Finland in 2019, where Helsinki Partners signed under its previous name Helsinki Business Hub.

In conjunction with a Helsinki Partners delegation – including CEO Clarisse Berggårdh – visiting Japan, a signing ceremony will be held on 12 December 2022 in Fukuoka.

“I’m excited to continue our functional and amicable work with Fukuoka. This partnership between Helsinki Partners and Fukuoka Directive Council builds a bridge for companies and other innovators in our respective regions to walk across. They can cross the bridge to the other side of the world and forge RDI and business collaborations of their own,” says Berggårdh.

Together, the parties agree to promote activities through information exchange and joint projects that fall under the theme “bridging innovation”. The aim is to deepen friendly relations and create a mutually beneficial cooperation between organisations and businesses in Helsinki and the Fukuoka metropolitan area. Moreover, the goal of renewing this partnership is to create business opportunities that help the companies and economies in the two regions to grow sustainably and strengthen existing networks.

The main achievements of the cooperation between Helsinki Partners and Fukuoka Directive Council include a series of events organised in 2021. The events focused on the exchange of information and best practices involving: smart cities, smart energy, health and educational sectors, and the ingredients of a good life.

• February 2021: Co-organised event Fukuoka x Helsinki: Boost to smart cities
• June 2021: Co-organised event Helsinki x Fukuoka Designing Better Life: Smart Cities, Smart Energy
• December 2021: Co-organised event under Designing Better Life – Helsinki Meets Japan: Innovating for Better Healthcare and Rethinking Education with AI
• In November 2022, a collaboration event Japan visiting: Fukuoka x Helsinki – Promising and dynamic changes in health care market held at the international startup event Slush in Helsinki

About the partners

Helsinki Partners is a city marketing, investment and talent attraction company owned by the City of Helsinki. The company’s mission is to promote the city’s sustainable growth, to attract investments, businesses, talent and visitors, to conduct international sales and marketing, as well as to build Helsinki’s global brand and reputation.

Fukuoka Directive Council (Fukuoka D.C.) is the industry-academia-government-citizens joint Think & Do tank. We shape the new future of Fukuoka and strengthen its international competitiveness through strategic planning and implementations for growth. We focus on Fukuoka Metropolitan area as a core and drive potential business projects in cooperation with Kyushu and neighbouring Asian regions.