Presentation at the Summer School "Leadership and Governance for Sustainable Tourism" - 2nd July 2014 Finland

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South Ostrobothnia - region ofSouth Ostrobothnia - region of
culture and entrepreneurshipculture and entrepreneurship
Leadership and GovernanceLeadership and Governance
for Sustainable Tourismfor Sustainable Tourism
July 2nd, 2014July 2nd, 2014
Asko PeltolaAsko Peltola
Region MayorRegion Mayor

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3. Finland
Population about 5.5 million
sparsely settled (17 pers./km2
)
some 30 % live in rural areas
a country of forests and lakes
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4. South Ostrobothnia
• 194 000 pers. / 13 400 km²
(= 14,4 pers. / km²)
• Share of agriculture and
forestry: 12 % => Food
Province of Finland
• Main economic pillars: Food
(agriculture and processing =
25% of regional GDP) +
Wood + Metal
• Region of entrepreneurship
(esp. SMEs)
• The importance of tourism is
increasing
Helsinki
Seinäjoki
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Income from tourism in SOB
Direct employment impact 1.800 persons
(jobs, employed persons per year)
Mill. euros

6. Tourists staying overnight in SOB
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Share of
foreign tourists

7. Including all accommodation facilities of at least 20 bunks.

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What has been done
• Actions in developing tourism in SOB
– Development program since1997
– Coordination of activities and strategies
– The newest Tourism strategy 2013-2017
=> more tourists, especially from abroad
• The main challenge is that SOB is not
"a traditional tourist region"
– but there are unique attractions and big
(cultural) events also in our region

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Plans for the future
• More foreign tourists all the year round,
especially from neighbouring countries
(Russia, Sweden)
• More professional business operations
• Developing of customer orientated, attractive,
premium-quality, easily available tourism
products
• Better networking and co-operation
especially in development, marketing and
sales of tourism across administrative and
regional boundaries

10. Values
• ”South Ostrobothnianism”
(own regional culture, traditions,
regional/local dialect etc.)
• Profitable, growing and
developing tourism
business
• Customer orientation and
customer satisfaction
• Safety, security and quality
• Sustainable tourism and
preserving the regional
culture
Focus areas
• Development of tourism
centres (= destinations)
• Development of theme-
based products and
services (3 main themes)
Themes through the
Strategy:
• Culture and Local Food
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Strategic values and focus areas

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12. Welcome to
South Ostrobothnia!
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