The area of Bothnian Bay has a strong industrial history and it’s resource is favorable cross-border business circumstances. The border at Tornio-Haparanda between Finland and Sweden has been so called soft border until the beginning of the pandemic. It has enabled composing not only social relations and a community cross-border but also flexible mobility of labor, goods and services cross-border.

The global pandemic and restrictions in mobility have had negative effects to daily life of border communities. It has also seriously weakened the dynamics of cross-border cooperation. This project aims to restart and activate systematic, cross-border network after the pandemic.  

Concrete goals and actions are in two partnership themes:

1.Sustainable, cross-border traffic and functional logistic connections in Bothnian Arc

The aim is to:

• Make the cross-border co-operation of transport system more effective and coordinated
• Promote the development of regional vision for the future for   TEN-T core network in Bothnian Arc
• Promote cross-border logistical, sustainable transport solutions, transport and travel chains and connectivity of different modes of transports interoperability by taking into consideration both passenger and goods transport standpoint being in infrastructure and  investments
• Identify and promote development activities which may help promoting use of digitalization in logistic sector for example reaching climate benefits in travel and transport chains

2. Marine- and northern based tourism development in Bothnian Bay

The aim is to:

• Strenghten internal and external networks and partnerships in tourism industry and its sustainable development in Bothnian Bay area
• Improve prerequisities for creating common crossborder and sustainable tourism services and enhance accessibility of services and maritime destinations
• Enhance to role of maritime culture and cultural history in tourism content creation
• Promote the development of the area as coherent, cross-border, safety tourism destination to meet the new global trends and international demand and to support tourism and event industries to recover from pandemic

Project is financed by Ministery of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland. Project is led by the city of Oulu and Business Oulu. Partners of the project are: Finnish-Swedish Bothnian Arc -association, The Council of Oulu Region, Visit Oulu and Metsähallitus.