In the rapidly evolving landscape of urbanisation, metropolitan areas are undergoing significant growth which can sometimes present substantial challenges to the performance of the local governments.

These transformations necessitate a proactive and tailored approach to ensuring governance processes, through timely and efficient adjustments in policies, services, and infrastructure to effectively meet the evolving needs of urban communities. To this end, upon the request of the Finnish authorities, the Council of Europe Centre of Expertise for Good Governance is starting the preparation of a Policy advice document for the metropolitan area of Turku, that will analyse the topical issues from an expert perspective while taking onboard relevant experience from several European countries. 

A kickoff discussion with Finnish authorities will be organised on 19 October 2023 in Turku, Finland, during which a Council of Europe expert will meet key stakeholders to discuss the content of the document and define the main questions it should address. Afterwards, in November, the Council of Europe experts from Austria, Latvia and Slovakia, specialising in different aspects of metropolitan governance such as regulatory framework, inter-municipal cooperation and spatial planning, will discuss the challenges for the City of Turku and share good national practice to inspire better governance arrangements and processes in the metropolitan area.

The work on the policy advice is carried out through the European Union – Council of Europe Join Project “Delivering Good Governance and Balanced Local Economy in Finland”, and its finalisation and presentation to the Finnish stakeholders is anticipated in February 2024.