The Development Centre Häme Ltd. is a regional development company established in year 2000, owned by the City Council of Hämeenlinna and seven surrounding municipalities. The company’s main function is to promote and develop regional economic policy and to arrange and organize business services in the Hämeenlinna region.
Hämeenlinna region is centrally located in the middle of Southern Finland, about 100 km north of Helsinki. The region has about 90.000 inhabitants and the area is readily reachable. The traffic connections are the best in Finland and nearly half (over two million) of the Finnish population with the greatest purchasing power live within a radius of 100 km. Most of the country’s businesses are also located within the region. With regard to internationalization, there are good connections to airports and harbours.

The main task of the almost 40 employees of the Development Centre is to serve companies and entrepreneurs, and to offer business services within the “one-stop shop principle”. The aim is to develop the region’s attractiveness and competitiveness, to market the region’s know-how and strengths and to coordinate the network and co-operation of the region’s business service organizations. Other objectives of the company are to start and manage development projects and to improve companies’ operating environment and co-operation. The company also offers financial instruments and innovation services. Furthermore, it provides and helps establish new companies. The company is working in a local network, so that an entrepreneur can get all service from one place. This network covers 13 local organisations in the field of economic and business promotion.

For BEPART the experience of this explicitly regional rooted partner is an important gain and completion of perspectives and know-how in and from the field. Häme Development Centre on the other hands expects exchange on an international level into improving the efficiency and effectiveness of sub-regional networks, of entrepreneurship promotion and education in general, especially for the practical use on a regional and local level (e.g. to update the entrepreneur educational programmes at the vocational and higher levels). Finally, training of training offers could be a result of the work of BEPART.

Responsible local project manager and contact-person:
Hillevi Ahonen

Häme Development Centre Ltd.
Vanajantie 10
FIN 13110 Hämelinna

http://www.kehittamiskeskus.com/portal/kehittamiskeskus/in_english/hame_development_centre_ltd./

Hillevi Ahonen, Project Manager

Phone +358-3-6371155
Fax +358-3-621 23 66
hillevi.ahonen@projektistudio.fi