Oulu, Finland
City participating to the joint project “Building an intercultural integration approach in Finland”
co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe
Oulu is a vibrant city located by the Gulf of Bothnia at the mouth of the Oulu River, a historical trading site. It has evolved from a town known for tar and salmon into a modern hub of innovation and technology. The Oulu region is Finland’s northern metropolitan area and the largest centre of the northern regions of Scandinavia, counting a population of 250,000 inhabitants in 2022.
Oulu is home to a diverse population, with 7,869 foreign nationals, representing 34% of the population, and 10,999 residents (52%) speaking a mother tongue other than the official Finnish languages. The largest foreign communities in Oulu are Chinese, Indian, Russian, Iraqi, and Vietnamese. The most commonly spoken foreign languages in the city include English, Arabic, Russian, Chinese and Persian. Oulu’s dynamic and youthful population plays a significant role in its continued growth and innovation.
