The City of Hamina and representatives of entrepreneurs signed a joint vitality pledge
The historic publication of the vitality program and the signing ceremony of the vitality pledge were held at the Town Hall on February 17, 2026. Mayor Ilari Soosalu gave the opening speech at the event. In his speech, he highlighted the city strategy and, in particular, vitality, which was the focus of the event. The city strategy, confirmed at the end of last year, raises vitality to one of the three strategic priorities. Vitality is sought in particular through attractiveness, decision-making that supports business activities, and by making the city a platform and enabler for experiments and new innovations that promote business life.
The vitality pledge between the City of Hamina and entrepreneurs was signed at the event. The signatories were the City of Hamina's Vitality Director Mia Hamalainen and Mayor Ilari Soosalu and Chairman of the Hamina Entrepreneurs Association Blue Huhtala.
The core of the pledge is to promote an entrepreneur-friendly atmosphere and strengthen the vitality of the city through cooperation. With the agreement, entrepreneurs and the city agree to promote effective dialogue, business impact assessments, smooth planning and permitting processes, and entrepreneur-friendly procurement. The agreement also includes a section on joint monitoring and evaluation to monitor progress.
At the event, Mia Hämäläinen also presented Hamina's vitality program, which begins with a summary of Hamina's business-friendly attitude. Hamina's business-friendly attitude is a shared will, from entrepreneurs to officials and decision-makers. Hamina entrepreneurs feel valued, vitality perspectives are taken into account in decision-making, and together we proudly put Hamina's entrepreneurship on the world map. The goals of Hamina's vitality program 2026-2030 are to increase Hamina's international position, act as a home port for innovations, support business activities through decision-making, and increase Hamina's attractiveness.
Entrepreneur, respond and influence by answering the municipal barometer survey
The National Municipality Barometer survey conducted by Yrittäjät is open from 11 February to 16 March 2026. The survey surveys cooperation between municipalities and entrepreneurs and the state of economic policy every two years, nationally, regionally and by municipality.
The results of the municipal barometer provide an overview of the current situation in the municipality. The City of Hamina uses the results when analyzing the development of the city's vitality, and the results are used as indicators of the implementation of various development measures, for example in the city's strategy and vitality program.
The results of the Municipal Barometer Survey are used in everyday life and to support decision-making for both office holders and elected officials. Of course, the results are also used in comparisons between municipalities, both regionally and nationally.